For What Reason
by HaruMari
Summary: Hermione repeats her 7th year in hopes to live through it without any problems. However, a series of assault, inter house rivalry, night terrors and a new adversary threaten her peace of mind. To make matters worse, the return of a sworn enemy wants to make amends with her but would she be willing to let him into her life and possibly, her heart?
1. Chapter One

Hermione's heart sank as she pushed herself through the invisible barrier that separated King's Cross Railway to Platform 9 ¾. The sight of many young witches and wizards hugging their families goodbye for another year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was nostalgic. In a few hours, she'll return to her childhood and relive being a teenage girl again as it was going to be her eighth year.

Ever since Minerva McGonagall became headmistress of the school, she had advised those who were unable to finish their seventh year into taking their N.E.W.T exams. Hermione thought it was a wonderful idea to at least graduate before heading out into the world as an adult, but both Harry and Ron thought otherwise.

The boy who lived was already offered a position in the ranks of the Auror Department, something he had dreamt of becoming ever since attending Hogwarts. As long as he did the extra training courses required, he was guaranteed a position. As for Ron, he decided that co-running his brothers' store could help him finance better and possibly start his own business. Hermione, however, didn't see financing and business as something Ron wanting to pursue but supported him nonetheless.

Both boys were so eager and exceptionally worthy to start that by mid-summer, Harry had already packed his bags and said his farewells until the holidays. Meanwhile, Ron grew too busy assisting his brother at the store.

Ever since then, Hermione remained to spend her free time at the Burrow with the rest of the Weasley family.

Fast forward to 1 September, Hermione stood quietly in front of the Hogwarts Express staring blankly at its bright red coating. Children and adults alike turned their heads and snuck glances at the brilliant witch as she stood there in a trance. They whispered to one another and pointed at her but no one dared approach her. Hermione just sighed and reminded herself of how she was used to all the stares. She learned to ignore it whenever she stepped out in public, which was rare since the war had only ended a couple months before, and sought peace within herself.

A light cool breeze brushed against her skin which caused Hermione to shiver. She was a little unfazed by the surrounding crowd, but as they continued to stare, the sight of them grew overwhelming.

Dreadful thoughts began to run through her head.

Memories of the war slowly began to creep back into her conscience. The people surrounding her provoked awful feelings that heightened her anxiety and paranoia. Recalling the events of her painstaking travels of running from Snatchers, being tormented by Death Eaters and witnessing the deaths of her loved ones came back in flashes of fear and panic, she grew more frantic inside.

Hermione's breathing quickened and her hands trembled by her side with cold sweat. Minutes of standing amidst the crowd begun to feel like hours and she started to reconsider her attendance at Hogwarts.

Then suddenly, like a godsend, familiar red tresses flowed before her very own eyes. The gentle smell of roses quickly reassured Hermione that she was living in the present, where it was safe. The sight of the young witch who claimed such a beautiful mane managed to calm her down completely.

Ginny Weasley pulled her trunk right next to Hermione before standing confidently by her side. The girl did this with great effort but did not bother with the help offered to her as she passed by. She didn't seem bothered by the weight of her trunk or all of the people eyeing her either.

Garnering more stares in her general direction, Hermione should've felt distressed. However, seeing as the younger witch could have cared less, she felt a growing sense of relief.

"Are you sure you don't want to use a trolley?" Hermione asked amused and slightly shivering from another cool breeze.

She no longer felt extremely nauseous.

"I'm fine," she assured the older witch, "looks like it's only you and me. Mum and dad are so busy nowadays, huh?"

"Yeah."

Hermione faintly smiled at the charming girl who gave off an air of poise. Sometimes, she wondered if anything ever fazed her. Thinking back now, Ginny surprisingly remained the most level-headed and reliable throughout the whole summer during reconstruction. Granted, the aftermath did affect the girl just as bad as it did anyone else who's lost loved ones, she continued to push on and overcame something Hermione herself has yet to figure out what. Without Ginny, Hermione probably wouldn't have been standing where she stood waiting to board the Hogwarts Express. Without her or her family's encouragements, she would've been lost and all alone.

After the war, Mr and Mrs Weasley insisted that Harry and Hermione stay with them at the Burrow until they got everything sorted out. With the boys already looking into careers, however, Hermione was left to decide whether or not she would go back to Hogwarts or do what her best friends had done and look for a job. The Weasleys, especially Ginny, urged she continue on with her education and reassured her that they would always be there to help her in her need.

Hermione never did get the chance to go back to her parents and uplift the memory charm but remained thankful, gracious and forever in debt to them.

Now, both Hermione and Ginny stood together on the platform and stared at the Hogwarts Express relieve some steam. They silently watched as students, new and old, started to crowd the station and wait to board the old train. Hugs and kisses were aplenty as greetings and introductions were in the mass.

Seeing as everything was starting to fall back into place, Hermione decided to wait a little while behind and watch the students bustle their way into the compartments.

Soon it would be another year at the place she once called home.

* * *

"Luna and Neville are probably already inside," Ginny suggested as they finally made their way onto the train.

Hermione recalled that some of her former seventh-year classmates were coming back for their eighth year as well and couldn't wait to see how everyone was doing.

Ginny led the way through the train's corridor toward the back, searching for an empty compartment or one already occupied by people they knew. The train was fuller than usual with a handful of older students stuffed in with new ones, it almost made Hermione snicker at its ridiculousness.

"There they are," Ginny said as she finally spotted Luna and Neville residing in one of the compartments closer to the back of the train.

When they slid the door open, Luna was standing, trying to put something back in her trunk atop her seat while Neville was reading a Herbology book right beside her. Luna noticed the two before Neville could look up from his book and hugged both Hermione and Ginny, disregarding the object in her hand.

"Ginny! Hermione!"

The object that had fallen onto Neville's lap startled him along with Luna's excited outburst.

"Hermione, I knew you would make it!" Neville gleefully expressed, seeing her in person.

He picked up the object which Hermione could now see was a Bubble Bow Booster kit and awkwardly handed it back to Luna after she hugged them. Neville finally managed to squeeze in his hugs.

"Why wouldn't she?" Ginny rejoined before sitting down opposite Neville.

"It was rumoured that since Harry and Ron have positions in the Auror Department, Hermione would already be working in the Ministry too," Neville recounted for them.

Hermione sat next to Ginny and was surprised to hear such a rumour.

"Hermione would like to finish her schooling before infiltrating the Ministry again, isn't that right?" Luna broadly asked with wide eyes.

"Er— right."

Even though Luna was correct, she couldn't help feel startled by the way the unique girl spoke.

"Harry does have an Auror position. But Ron? He's too busy with the store," Ginny responded before reaching out to her pygmy puff, Arnold, which she had brought out and placed on her left shoulder before petting.

"Actually, he did think about going into Auror training, but he wasn't so sure," Hermione chimed in.

"Either way, my idiot brother found an excuse not to take the N.E.W.T. exams," Ginny concluded.

The group erupted in small laughter as they continued to reminiscence about their good ol' days at Hogwarts together with Harry and Ron. Hermione couldn't help feeling a little warmer inside.

* * *

An hour later, Hermione had to leave and make her way to the prefect compartment. Over the summer, she received a letter exclaiming that she would remain a prefect but unfortunately was not given the position of Head Girl. The new Head Girl and Head Boy were from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw respectively and were in Ginny's year, which to her was fair enough. She was more surprised Ginny didn't get the position with her grades being top notch in previous years and her recently receiving the position as captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Alas, Ginny herself said that it would have been too much to handle and expressed how glad she wasn't given the position.

Looking out the train's windows as she walked, Hermione languidly made her way through the rowdy corridor to the prefect compartment. She decided to head out early to avoid socialising with anyone on her way there. But when she finally reached the compartment and entered, she didn't know whether to turn around and head back to her friends or wait until the other prefects had arrived. All she knew was that she definitely did not want to be in the same room as the boy who slept peacefully where he sat.

Luckily, the platinum-haired was leaning close to the window and not in her direction where it would be easier to see her stand there ogling him if he woke.

"Malfoy..." Hermione whispered, wondering if she should wake him up or not.

As she stared at him, hoping he'd just wake already, she noticed how serious he looked as he slept, not so much in peace as she previously thought. It was as if he himself hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in a long while. She figured as he still wore his refined black coat buttoned all the way up to his neck, he must have immediately fallen asleep out of mere exhaustion once the train started to head out.

But of course, she wasn't going to sympathize with him as she too had not rest peacefully since, and yet, she still made sure to wakefully attend to her duties. Why couldn't he do the same?

Hermione decided to leave the compartment to find something else to do rather than stare at Malfoy all day to pass the time. This year, she wasn't going to bother with him or taunting Slytherins. The war had changed people and it had changed for the better. Good triumphed over evil and the devil himself was gone. So why did Hermione still feel uneasy?

She ultimately decided that she would wait outside for the rest of the prefects to show to the meeting and then she would enter.

* * *

 _Disclaimer: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the Harry Potter world, which is trademarked by J. K. Rowling. Some quotes from the series were used for entertainment purposes only._


	2. Chapter Two

After the war, Hermione had not expected him to return to Hogwarts. There was the high possibility that he wouldn't and yet he was there in the flesh. She thought that by now, he would go off and live in shame or the sort. But alas, he did not.

It was made public that Draco Malfoy and his mother be placed under house arrest for their aid in war crimes while his father, Lucius Malfoy, be sent immediately to the reconstructed Azkaban. However, the remaining Malfoys' sentences were short-lived that by the end of the summer, they were able to pack their bags and leave for France. Because of this, everyone including Hermione had assumed they would live the rest of their lives there and away from Britain's wizarding community.

Nevertheless, she assumed wrong as he sat right before her very own eyes.

Hermione stopped herself from looking over to his side of the carriage as she had no place to glare at him for the past things he's done because quite frankly she could've cared less, albeit she was a little surprised.

She wasn't the only one baffled by his appearance either as all the prefects, Head Boy and Head Girl snuck glances his way. Apparently, Malfoy was given his prefect's badge back and was there for the meeting as well. This meant that the Head Boy and Girl had to continue with their orders on slight adjustments for the older and newer prefect students.

The entire time, Hermione tried to make herself less noticeable and stood far behind some other Gryffindor prefects. There were supposed to be two prefects, each from years five through seven and from every house. This totalled twenty-four prefects for the entire school year, not including Head Boy and Girl. However, since the return of some previous seventh years, a scatter of prefects respectfully returned to their positions and now there was an abundance of students taking on the role.

Two Ravenclaws, two Hufflepuffs, Malfoy and Hermione were all together the extra prefects from her own year. In total, thirty prefects were to preside at Hogwarts in her eighth year. The Head Boy and Girl had made note of the addition and managed to assign everyone their patrolling schedules.

Hermione was actually quite relieved for more splits in the hours patrolling. She would have more time to study, do homework, and read. As boring as that sounded, she was far more expectant of the trivial things.

"You all may go," Ronan Davies, the Head Boy ordered before promptly leaving.

Hermione inhaled sharply before getting up to patrol the train's corridor with the others.

* * *

By early evening, the Express finally reached Hogsmeade Station. When Hermione exited the train alone, she was genuinely happy to see a certain half–giant call out to greet first-year students again.

"Firs'-years! Firs'-years over here!"

Hagrid directed most of the fearful looking children to the shady path that led to the fleet of small boats. Hermione figured because he was rather busy, she would greet him later when he had the time.

However, she didn't expect him to have managed to find her in the mass of students as he frantically yelled and waved at her.

"Hermione! Good ter see yeh!" He bellowed over the heads of the many frightful eleven-year-olds.

She beamed at the sight and kindly waved back, glad to see he was doing all right.

"Gotta take the firs'-years in, see yeh soon, alright!" Hagrid hollered last, before disappearing into the grove himself.

Hermione nodded in return and watched as his enormous figure gradually retreated. It wasn't until a light tap on her shoulder finally averted her attention away from the path.

"Ready to go?"

Ginny, Luna, and Neville had managed to find her in the cluster of older students left behind.

Hermione nodded once more and followed the trio to the carriages that awaited their arrival.

When they made it to the line of carriages, Hermione paused at the sight of the thestrals at the front of each vehicle. She could finally see the majestic creatures but at a disheartened price. Her heart began to pound in her chest again as the daunting images of the war evoked past memories. She had to close her eyes and take deep breaths to calm herself down again.

When she opened them, she noticed she wasn't the only one who had stopped before the carriages to stare at them in awe. Many, nearly all, of the older students stopped and watched the thestrals kick the ground or stand in their positions waiting to move.

The atmosphere grew dismal as everyone around went eerily silent. Her classmates stood still as if commemorating those lost at the Battle of Hogwarts. It was like dementors had come by and sucked all the happiness away from the area and she shivered again from the cold thought.

It wasn't until Luna and some other boys from the other houses started to pick out their own carriages did the gloom lift.

"We mustn't be late for the feast now," Luna said as she walked over to one of the thestrals and petted its neck, "I sure hope they have pudding."

Ginny and Neville followed her lead and started to pack the carriage chosen by the Ravenclaw with their luggage. Hermione followed in tow believing she had to get out of the depressing environment as soon as possible and was glad to have her friends there to keep a level head when she could not.

As she was about to step onto the carriage, she paused again and noticed something off in the distance that caught her eye.

Hermione could see a familiar head of platinum blonde stand not too far from where she was, staring at the same creature before his own cart.

She watched as the solemn features across Malfoy's face grew ever present. The boy stood upright with his hands in his coat pockets looking rather indifferent while Blaise Zabini, who was already in the carriage, called out to him. The blonde's attention shifted to the sound of Zabini's words and he started to move toward the carriage's entryway. But before he could step into the vehicle, he paused and turned his head Hermione's way, immediately catching her eyes.

It was like he had felt her stare from the distance, which startled her and quickly looked away. Her face flushed with slight embarrassment from the unexpected contact and instantly she regretted the awkward exchange. Hermione hurriedly climbed her carriage to escape the strange feeling and shook her head to clear her thoughts before finally moving once the four were completely in the confines of the carriage.

As Ginny and Neville began to talk amongst themselves, Hermione couldn't help but think about the days that were sure to come. She would be lying if she said she wasn't nervous because this would be the first time in her life she actually felt unprepared for school.

As the site of the old castle came into view, repaired and not in complete ruins, it astounded Hermione.

Again she took deep hesitant breathes that unknowingly caught Luna's undivided attention. Gently, without saying a word, the girl grabbed hold of Hermione's hand and stared off into the distance. Hermione steadily calmed down and quietly thanked the Ravenclaw for reassuring her everything was going to be okay and took one final deep breath.

Hermione mustered up all of her mental courage to see her attendance through. After all, she was finally back home, where it all began.


	3. Chapter Three

The older students started to file into the Great Hall with anticipation and hunger. They couldn't wait to sit down and feast on the many dishes laid out before them since their long arrival.

For Hermione, it was about the opposite as she slowly walked into the room that made her feel a dreadful emptiness. The hall was still the same as before with its grand doorway, large four house tables, and floating candles that illuminated the place. It was like the war never happened. But deep down, she could still feel those daunting memories that restricted her appetite.

Everything was in order as usual with all the Hogwarts professors seated at the front while Headmistress McGonagall waited for all the students to be present. The only thing out of the ordinary was a giant black plaque that stood behind the professors' table. It was elevated for the whole hall to see as it listed the names of the fallen engraved on the large stone.

For a while, everyone who entered stood staring at the marker before finally taking their seats at their respected house tables. Hermione remained frozen at the sight of the ominous object until Ginny moved her along to their table. She was going to need some time getting used to it.

The ceremony proceeded after all the first years were sorted and everyone was introduced to Head Boy Ronan Davies of Ravenclaw and Head Girl Melinda Bobbin of Hufflepuff. When they were finally all seated, the new Headmistress stood to address the entire school with a few opening words.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. The staff and I are glad to see many new and many old faces," McGonagall exclaimed as she browsed the room before she continued, "and we hope this year will be a revitalising experience for you all. "

McGonagall paused for a moment after receiving quiet applause from both students and staff. Her stern look was never unfazed however and she continued with her speech.

"As most of you may have noticed, there has been a slight change in the hall's decor," McGonagall said as she motioned all the black flags, "But this will only be temporary as not to upset any of you as you feast. Sensitive as it may be, I choose not to ignore the seriousness of past events where a great number of talented witches and wizards like you, sacrificed their lives for the greater good. Let us take this brief moment to commemorate their lives and their valiant acts of heroism."

Everyone in the room immediately fell silent. Some people closed their eyes for the occasion while others stared downward in contemplation. Nearly a minute of dead silence had gone by and Hermione started to feel stuffy.

"Thank you all for your time. Now, let's brighten up the sombre mood," McGonagall chimed as she lifted her arms with optimism, "I hope everyone will work hard to gain their house points with success this school year. And I hope you all will keep in mind that no matter where you go in life, Hogwarts will always welcome you home. Enjoy the feast."

The Headmistress received a heavy round of applause for her words. Hermione was glad Hogwarts would be run by a brilliant witch who she always looked up to.

Not before long, with only a wave of her hand, McGonagall changed the flags back to the Hogwarts crest and everyone began to feast on the various dishes that appeared from thin air.

Hermione, on the other hand, decided to take her time and look around the hall for other students within her year who had also returned to Hogwarts.

At the Gryffindor table Dean, Seamus, and Neville sat together while only she and Parvati Patil had returned. Her sister, Padma Patil and Anthony Goldstein were among the returning seventh years of Ravenclaw, while at the Hufflepuff table, Hannah Abbott, Ernie Macmillan, and a few others gathered around each other, all from her year.

Hermione was content to see these students return to finish their education, unlike her two best friends. Even when they had opted out on this chance to repeat a school year, she understood that they had many other important opportunities in store for them and wished them nothing but success.

Oh, how she missed the two.

At least she no longer had to worry about them failing and having to do most of the work to keep them on track of things. She didn't even want to start with all the mischief they somehow managed to get caught up in during their time at Hogwarts. So many altercations Hermione couldn't even count.

Suddenly, the thought of Harry and Ron picking fights with peers led her eyes to wander to the last table, far across the hall.

The Slytherin table, which sat a good amount of returning students, still had an aura of high-class superiority. Looking around the seventh year area, she was surprised to see Pansy Parkinson, the girl who taunted nearly everyone who wasn't in her circle, was missing. Hermione only recognised one other Slytherin girl and that was Daphne Greengrass sitting next to her younger sister, Astoria. And not too far from them were Theodore Nott, Blaise Zabini and the Slytherin prince himself, Draco Malfoy.

Hermione still couldn't believe he was attending as a returning student. She just couldn't comprehend why he would want to put himself in an environment that was intolerant toward his beliefs.

As she continued to peer over at his side, she could see that Malfoy definitely looked a lot more stern than usual. He looked rather bored of all the chatter around him but she could somehow see the small glint of uneasiness. Surprisingly, he no longer sported that dastardly snarl and had a much calmer demeanour about him. Her breath hitched as she stared at the boy and wondered what he was thinking.

Before she could dwell on the notion, Ginny snapped her out of it.

"Hermione, your plate is empty, you should eat something."

Hermione nodded in response and stuck her hand out at the dishes before her. It was quite hard looking at all the food that reappeared so easily but she had to make it look like she was eating so as to not worry Ginny. But as she recalled the days on the run with little to no food, it evidently made her feel queasy and unable to eat.

The cold stare she started to feel also did very little to help the queasiness go away. She looked up from her plate in search of those daunting eyes and found them across the hall staring directly at her.

Malfoy's harsh gaze chilled Hermione to the bone but she couldn't look away. He watched her the same way he did back at the carriages and she reddened again from the contact. They stared at each other for what felt like forever until finally, she looked away, her gaze fixated on the plate before her to block out the weight of his harsh gaze still upon her.

Did he still have something against her? She wondered.

* * *

After the feast, as a prefect of her house, Hermione was assigned to lead the new Gryffindors back to the common room and to their new dorms. As she gathered the first years, she couldn't help but notice a little girl making friends with two boys and remembered the very first time she met Harry and Ron. She truly wished the three the very best in their endeavours before continuing with her tour alongside another Gryffindor prefect.

The group walked through Hogwarts towards their dormitory in a timely fashion. The boy prefect she was assigned with did all of the talking and introducing while she stayed behind to catch any stragglers.

As they came upon many familiar areas, all restored to their grand forms, she couldn't help but feel cold. She wrapped her arms around herself for warmth but nothing seemed to work. The atmosphere grew dreary and her chest began to ache from sorrow.

"Just calm down," Hermione whispered under her breath, wanting nothing more than to retire to her bed as soon as possible.

The first years were finally settled in once the tour ended and Hermione finally made it back to her room in one peace. Although emotionally exhausted, seeing Ginny and Parvati getting ready for bed comforted her.

"Goodnight Hermione," Ginny faintly called over before shutting her curtain over her bedside.

"Goodnight Ginny."

And the two fell fast asleep.

 _Not long into her slumber, Hermione found herself in the middle of the woods. In her drowsy state, she closely examined her surroundings and fearfully determined she had ended up back in the Forest of Dean._

 _The atmosphere was dark and she could barely see anything in front of her. Hermione instinctively rummaged through her clothing to procure her wand in anxiety. The moment she found it, she held it up trembling and pointed it in the directions the murmurs and grunts were coming from._

 _"Lumos!"_

 _The leaves and thickets around her started to shake loudly. Her heart began to beat out of her chest and she couldn't steady her wand with the noise coming from all around rather than in one discerning area._

 _Suddenly, Hermione could feel the advancement of a dark figure looming in on her from behind. When she turned around, the horrendous form pounced on her and she screamed._

"Hermione! Hermione! Wake up, it's just a dream!"

Hermione's eyes flew wide open from the sound of Ginny's concerned voice echoing in her ears. Her breathing was heavy and she found herself bathed in her own cold sweat.

"Oh Hermione, it's all right," Ginny bent down and firmly hugged the waking girl to assure her that nothing bad was happening at the moment.

"Ginny..." Hermione muttered in response. She finally woke from her brief trance and began to breathe easily again.

It was only a nightmare, one of many she's gotten over the course of the summer. Not a surprise.

"Sorry to have woken you like this," Hermione said as Ginny pulled away from her to sit snug right by her side.

Ginny only smiled at her and turned her gaze toward the window. It was bright as day outside with only the two of them in the room.

"No, it's my fault I didn't wake you earlier. The other girls and I left for breakfast thinking you would come later, but when I didn't see you in the hall I came up and found you still in bed. You were trembling Hermione, so much I didn't know if waking you would have been a good idea. I'm sorry."

Hermione took Ginny's hand in hers before pulling her over for a hug. Without the younger Gryffindor by her side, she wouldn't know what to do with herself.

A little while later, Ginny suggested that Hermione get ready and grab something to eat before breakfast was over. She didn't like seeing Hermione not eating and promised her mum to get her more plump by the Christmas Holidays.

Hermione agreed she was a little hungry, having not eaten that much during the opening feast and went to get ready and head for the hall.

The moment she sat down at her table, however, she instantly felt unsettled in the pit of her stomach. She didn't know why she couldn't eat regularly anymore and it scared her.

"Hermione..." Ginny sadly called to her.

Neville noticed Hermione's lack of appetite and hurriedly swallowed down his muffin to speak to her.

"Hermione, if you're feeling nauseous, I could always ask Professor Sprout for shrivelfig leaves to concoct a drink for you. You know, they do have medicinal value especially when—"

"It's okay Neville, but thank you," Hermione blithely smiled.

He meekly smiled back at her and looked to Ginny for support. Ginny shrugged her shoulders and patted Hermione's back to soothe her.

Right when she was starting to feel better and ready to eat, she felt the same sensation of someone staring at her from afar. Looking up and across the hall, she could see Malfoy playing with his own breakfast, not peering at her. For a second, she could have sworn he was looking at her again like the night before.

Hermione stared at the Slytherin longer, hoping to catch him peer at her but Luna had suddenly obstructed her clear view of him by plopping herself down onto the bench across from her and next to Neville. Her presence startled some first years but she, Ginny, and Neville openly greeted her.

"Have you gotten your schedules from your Head of House yet?" Luna curiously asked the three.

"Oh, yes, that reminds me," Ginny exclaimed before pulling out a parchment and handing it over to Hermione, "here's your schedule."

Hermione took the item and scanned through her timetable. She found out that she would be taking N.E.W.T. level Potions with Ginny, N.E.W.T. level Herbology with Neville and N.E.W.T. level Charms and Transfiguration with Luna to no one's surprised.

They all willingly shared their schedules before breakfast was over, signalling the start of the new day.

* * *

Morning classes went by well for Hermione as far as introductions went. She didn't have to answer anything to her relief and quietly went about her day. It wasn't until she headed to her Double Potions class did it start to get interesting.

As she walked into one of the dungeon classrooms used for potions, she had found Ginny standing at a desolate table among a scatter of mostly Slytherin and Ravenclaw students all around. The atmosphere was dim but not too frightening as Hermione was looking forward to seeing the skills of the other students.

A little while later, when it seemed that everyone had made it to the room on time, Blaise Zabini and Draco Malfoy strolled on in right before class began. Their appearance surprised many of the students and for a few others, impressed them. The boys, who now looked like strapping young men, made their way to one of the remaining empty tables and situated themselves, paying no mind to the stares.

Hermione giggled slightly from Ginny's reaction on seeing the two. She over exaggerated her eye rolls and turned to face the front of the classroom where Professor Slughorn finally ambled in from his office.

"Hullo class, good to be back, yeah?" Slughorn announced as he made his way to the front of the room and garnered everyone's attention.

"Lovely to see familiar faces," Slughorn cheerily said as his eyes landed on Hermione and Ginny.

As part of the Slug Club, it seemed his attention became particular of the two.

"I hope to see everyone work hard this year as you all are N.E.W.T. level students. Who knows, you may be invited to an event I hold dear for those who excel in their work, I promise you that."

Professor Slughorn went on to introducing the course and its requirements to pass. Already he planned the year to be rigorous and not to be taken lightly which delighted Hermione. She and Ginny were confident enough they'd succeed in whatever potion he assigned _until_ Slughorn introduced a new system of pairing.

"I want teamwork to be quintessential in the process of potion brewing from now on and so I will require all of you to team up with no more than five and no less than two in a group."

Hermione and Ginny weren't too surprised by the direction, but when nearly everyone around them had paired up into groups, they were left with no one else.

"Sir is it alright if Hermione and I only work together, there's no one else to pair up with," Ginny called out to Slughorn as he went around the room to examine the groups.

"That makes another pair," the plump man voiced, "Mr Zabini and Mr Malfoy here are also in need of partners."

Ginny's mouth dropped open and Hermione's eyes widened. Out of all the pairings, fate decided that the two Gryffindors and the two Slytherins would work together.

As the girls tried to compose themselves, they agreed to work with them for the day and reluctantly made their way over to the Slytherin table.

When they reached the far end of the shared table, Ginny whispered into Hermione's ear.

"At least it's for today. Once class is over, we can forget this ever happened."

"Now that you are all in groups, welcome and introduce yourselves to the people who you'll be working with for the entire school year," Slughorn cheerfully announced at last.

Hermione's stomach lurched while Ginny's ears went pink in shock. Looking over to Malfoy, Hermione could see his eyes narrow at the professor as well as Zabini's, but they notably did not object.

"Professor!" Ginny blurted to capture Slughorn's attention once everyone in the room went ahead and introduced themselves to one another.

"Ah, my best pupils, all in one team! I'm looking forward to seeing your work, in particular, so make sure to be kind to one another." Slughorn outwardly ignored Ginny's urgent plea to reconsider changing the group's members and left them to head back to the front of the class.

Turning her gaze towards Malfoy, Hermione could see that the young man had looked pretty much the same as she felt while both Ginny and Zabini mirrored each other's looks.

She realised it was going to be a tougher year than she previously thought.


	4. Chapter Four

By lunchtime, Neville was surprised to hear that both Hermione and Ginny were going to be paired up with Malfoy and Zabini for the entire school year. He expressed great concern and worried what Harry and Ron would say.

"No, absolutely not. They cannot know about this," Ginny outwardly exclaimed.

"When they eventually find out, which I'm sure won't be too long from now, how would you think they'd react knowing you didn't tell them directly?" Neville brought up a great point which made Ginny promptly bow her head down in defeat.

Hermione was suddenly reminded that she had to write a letter to the two, keeping them up to date about her days in Hogwarts as promised, especially on the first day. Although she really wanted to exclude Malfoy in her letters, she couldn't _not_ tell them about him.

"How about we delay the news? They've just started their jobs and we wouldn't want to stress them more than they probably already are," Hermione interjected.

"Good idea! We'll tell them, eventually, and hopefully, by then everything will be sorted out."

Ginny was happily resolved and ate her lunch. Neville watched Ginny in puzzlement before chowing down into his own lunch, shaking his head at the younger girl in the process.

Hermione couldn't wait to write to the two, however, and decided to head to the library for the remainder of the period.

Before she left, Ginny called out to her.

"Hermione, you haven't eaten anything since this morning! You have to eat!"

Hermione, not wanting to upset the girl, grabbed a green apple from one of the picnic baskets on the table to go.

"I'll see you later!"

Once she made it to the library, all newly repaired, she retreated to her usual quaint spot where she'd always done her work in peace. Hermione manoeuvred her way through the large bookshelves and tables that structured the library and was ready to release some built up stress.

But the moment she came to her table, a certain platinum-haired Slytherin was fast asleep in her chair. His house robe draped over the chair's backside, leaving him in his white button-up shirt constricting around his arms that covered his face. With his head in between them, Hermione could barely see his sleepy expression.

Nevertheless, she was utterly shocked and instantly dropped her apple in hand.

She's seen so much of Malfoy the very first day of school it was starting to tear her sanity apart. Seeing him sit and contaminate the only place she could call her safe haven ripped at her insides. How dare he ruin her simple pleasures.

She didn't want to waste any more time glaring at Malfoy's unsuspecting form and hurriedly exited the library.

Hermione never saw his head lift wearily at what had fallen in front of him.

* * *

As the day went on, Hermione sat quietly in her last class with Luna. Since lunchtime, she felt restless and began to feel more haggard. Luna was a bit worried and asked Hermione if she had eaten beforehand.

"Just a bit," Hermione lied as she wrote down notes simultaneously.

"Then it must be the nargles," Luna concluded before pulling out a butterbeer cork necklace from the insides of her robe, "here, take this. It will keep them away and hopefully, you will feel better."

Hermione stopped writing to stare at the item the Ravenclaw held out to her. Even after gaping at its unsightly appearance, she brought it up over her head and pulled it gracefully down and around her neck before tucking it into her shirt for safe keeping. She was genuinely surprised by Luna's unusual yet thoughtful gift and took the necklace in gratitude.

The girl's subtle yet quirky smile made Hermione feel a little better and she reciprocated the small gesture before she continued to write her notes.

But by the end of class, Hermione didn't feel any better and physically felt weaker in comparison to her emotional state. She begun to feel the consequence of not eating reach somewhere in her abdomen and mentally cursed herself for not listening to Ginny.

When the bell decisively rang, Hermione got up swiftly from her seat, after quickly packing her supplies, and was one of the first to promptly leave the classroom. She left before Luna could even ask to escort her out.

As she hurriedly made her way past hordes of students, who from time to time stopped to point her out, she noticed two sizable figures walk her way. Malfoy, holding an apple, was in conversation with Theodore Nott. The two Slytherins hadn't noticed her as she tried to hide away from their eventual gaze and continued onward to her room.

Sighting Malfoy again made Hermione want to hurl and so she sprinted her way to the Gryffindor Tower.

Hermione plopped herself onto her bed once she finally reached her room. Her gut stung and her mind felt like it would spill out of her ears. The pounding in her chest ached and she couldn't stop the constant pangs that rung through her head.

Was she going insane?

Tears fell from her clenched eyes as she held herself tightly to her covers. Every moment and every feeling had swelled up tremendously like it was finally going to blow from all the tension. Her silent screams as she inhaled and exhaled heavily ran continuously until she no longer had the energy to persist. Hermione eventually cried herself to sleep, drowned in her soundless tears.

Finally, did she rest in a dreamless state of mind.

By evening, a gentle pat on Hermione's arm woke her. Ginny sat beside her form and looked rather worried to see her dishevelled and still in uniform.

"Hermione, are you alright? Luna said you ran back to the dorm looking pale," Ginny asked as she rubbed Hermione's arm in comfort.

"I feel a lot better now," Hermione sat up and rubbed her right temple, "what time is it?"

"It's six, which means dinner should be ready," Ginny got up from the bed and placed a hand on her hip, "and since you're feeling better as you say you are, you're going to go down to the hall and eat an actual meal. Part of the reason why you're feeling worn out is that your nutrient intake is so low."

"Thanks for the concern, but I'm all right, I've eaten enough," Hermione returned, not wanting to see a certain classmate just yet.

"I'm serious Hermione, I'm worried about you. Your behaviour isn't normal. Don't make me have to owl Harry and Ron about this, because like you said, they shouldn't stress out more than what they're dealing with right now. I know you aren't eating properly Hermione, Luna told me."

Hermione sighed and realised how naive she was behaving.

"If you're feeling bad, it may be that time of the month. Maybe you should visit Madam Pomfrey and ask for a potion to relieve the pain," Ginny suggested.

Ginny was right, it must have been her monthly coming soon. It would explain all of her emotions and physical sensations hitting her all at once. It would explain her loss of appetite and weariness too.

"Thank you, Ginny. I don't know what I'd do without you here," Hermione sincerely acclaimed.

"Not a problem. I'm here for you Hermione."

Hermione hugged Ginny as she got up to head for dinner. Ginny remained by her side the entire walk in case Hermione ever felt too feeble. Luckily, she was able to walk with enough strength in her spine towards the Great Hall with no troubles.

Hermione and Ginny arrived later than most and they both received a good amount of stares as they entered. Once they reached the Gryffindor table, Hermione paused to stare at the black plaque that was still situated at the front of the hall behind the professors. For a quick second, her heart pounded in her chest seeing the ominous object displayed there at the front but settled down when Ginny brought her attention to the food before her.

"Hermione, this looks delicious!" Ginny exclaimed to avert her gaze.

Hermione smiled at the girl and took her seat next to the redhead. She managed to eat some things and eventually an entire meal which was a relief.

But when she thought she could finally eat and function regularly, she could sense again that familiar pair of eyes eerily graze the back of her head.

Malfoy's stone-cold stare caught her eyes as she rotated her head his way. He held no snarl nor any sign of disgust looking at her and she couldn't, for the life of her, understand why she was a common source of prospect. Before she could look away with slight apprehension, the Slytherin's attention shifted to Zabini who spoke to him by his side and their contact broke.

Hermione was left puzzled.

What did he want from her?

Her attention was then interrupted by Ginny and Neville as they all finished their dinner and started to clear up and head in for the night. Hermione followed the pair quietly, relieved to be leaving the hall.

Back at the Common Room, the three decided to sit together in front of the fireplace and write their letters back home. Ginny wrote to her parents and Harry while Neville wrote to his grandmother. Hermione wrote to Harry first and recounted her time in Hogwarts so far. She knew Harry was more reasonable of the two boys when it came to mishaps but for his sake, decided to lay off about the Slytherin news and tell him instead of some of the physical changes that happened to the school. When it came to writing to Ron, she spoke with more affection, her reddened face peaking a certain Gryffindor's interest.

"Writing to _Ronald_ are you?" Ginny asked with a smug look.

"It's none of your concern," Hermione countered not looking at the girl from embarrassment.

Neville sniggered a little from Ginny's inquiry. She had to hit him and the younger girl's arms to stop them from erupting into childish laughter.

"And what about you and _Harry_ , hm?" Hermione countered again.

Ginny's ears slowly resembled the common room's colour and had to swat at both Hermione and Neville before they could make fun of her in return.

"Luckily for me, it's just me grandmum," Neville voiced complacent.

The two girls promptly looked at each other and smiled in unison before replying, "that's because _Luna_ is here."

The sudden jerk of his hand caused his ink bottle to spill over onto his letter and Hermione and Ginny burst out into laughter from his reaction. The three of them went back and forth at each other's necks until they couldn't take all of the pangs hitting their stomachs from the humorous banter.

Hermione hadn't felt this way since her school days with Harry and Ron. Watching Ginny and Neville interact was a whole new experience for her and she quite liked it. But alas, it would never give her the same warmth Harry and Ron gave her, not with the chill in the air still persistent.

When she finished her letters to the boys, she heard Ginny speak of the start of the new Quidditch season to Neville. She asked him to consider trying out for a position on the team since she was the new captain looking for new members. She complained about the old Slytherin captain, Theodore Nott, taking up a position he should have given up to an underclassman but all in all, wondered how well he'll train his team for the year. Neville replied back to the fiery redhead and Hermione found herself distant yet again.

She wondered if Malfoy would join the Slytherin Quidditch team that year before she shook her head from ever thinking such a thing. Thinking about Malfoy would only do her more harm than good in her current emotional state. It was imminently exhausting.

But why couldn't she stop?

Hermione shivered once more before turning herself in for the night. The earlier she slept, the more she had time to rest before the nightmares began.

Oh, how she quivered at the thought.


	5. Chapter Five

The next morning, owl mail commenced at breakfast. Packages arrived for nearly all the students, with Hermione receiving letters from Harry, Ron and Molly Weasley. She decided to open her letters at a later time however and read them thoroughly once she was given the chance to.

Ginny received countless letters from her parents, brothers, and Harry as well, while Neville received a large package from his grandmother of all the things he still managed to forget back home. Luna came by their table to share some issues of the Quibbler and a new wonky object her father gave to her that Neville took it upon himself to examine.

Hermione watched the two exchange their abnormal yet affectionate semblance and couldn't help but wonder about a certain someone.

She slowly turned her gaze toward the Slytherin table and her eyes landed on Malfoy who too had received a small elegant package. She curiously watched him slowly untie the black ribbon on the rectangular box and peer inside. She herself couldn't see the gift and was slightly disappointed to see him close the box as soon as he saw what was inside. Hermione noticed some of the girls surrounding him were also quite inquisitive of his gift and egged Malfoy to reveal what he received.

Malfoy, not listening to any one of them, pushed the box aside and continued to eat and ignore the persistent girls. Daphne Greengrass, however, wasted no time closing the distance between the two to get him to open up. The other remaining girls grew louder in response, but he didn't seem to care as he ate his breakfast quietly and seemingly unperturbed, not until he looked up and found Hermione's brown eyes.

She was startled by his ashen stare and couldn't look away. The change in his expression from indifferent to priggish disturbed her along with his one-sided smirk. Her face grew pink not from embarrassment but from growing indignation. She rounded up the courage to finally look away and immediately packed her things before announcing to her friends she would head to class early.

* * *

After dinner, Hermione headed straight for the library to finish her school work. Her classes went by smoothly and did not consist of a certain Slytherin for the rest of the day which delighted her. She made her way through the endless bookshelves, easily evading books that stacked themselves, and headed straight to her usual spot.

She had almost forgotten about the incident earlier and stopped right before she could enter the vicinity, scared to see if anyone else sat in her place, especially if it were Malfoy.

Hermione took caution and slowly peered from behind the bookshelf to confirm her suspicions. Luckily for her, no one sat in her corner and was happily left to her own devices. The Gryffindor comfortably situated herself and in no time, the table was filled with her assorted books and parchment papers.

Hermione, too enthralled in her work, didn't seem to notice the very person she wanted to avoid appear by the bookshelf.

"Always the overachiever," a deep voice drawled.

Hermione jumped in her seat. She lost her grip on her quill from the sudden remark which caused the ink to splatter over her parchment. When she looked up to see who had rudely disrupted her train of thought, she immediately stood from her spot and reached for her wand. Malfoy was leaning against the bookshelf with his arms crossed over his chest, looking straight her way. He didn't at all flinch from her startled reaction and looked apathetic.

"Did I startle you, Granger?" he said as he eyed her hand grip tightly around her wand.

"What do you want Malfoy?" Hermione managed to firmly ask.

He didn't answer her right away and only stared at her. His gaping made her extremely uncomfortable and she made no move to welcome him.

"I was looking through the aisles and noticed you here," Malfoy finally said as he casually leaned off of the bookshelf.

Hermione's eyes narrowed and she instinctively drew back as he placed his hands in his pockets and took one step forward.

"Stop. Don't come closer," Hermione warned, now with her wand in the air directly pointed at his chest.

"Relax, I'm not going to hurt you," Malfoy muttered as he took another step forward.

"I'm warning you Malfoy, I won't hesitate to—"

"Jinx me? I've done nothing to receive such a threat."

There was a silent pause between the two. Malfoy was infuriatingly right. She didn't want to start a quarrel already at the beginning of the school year especially if she were responsible for starting a fight.

When Hermione could see he wasn't moving, she lowered her wand slightly and inhaled sharply.

"Well, what do you want then? It's obvious you weren't searching for anything standing there, staring at me," Hermione countered.

Malfoy looked like he wanted to retort but said nothing for some time.

"Listen. When I saw you, I thought that maybe... you could help me with the written potions assignment," Malfoy shrugged his shoulders, "but since you're so uptight I've started to reconsider."

Malfoy stood straight as he took his hands out of his pockets; his palms facing upright to show her he held no wand.

"You... want _my_ help?" She asked, sceptical as she looked at his hands.

"It would be much appreciated."

"If this is a joke, it isn't funny."

"No joke," Malfoy raked his hand through his hair while he mustered a small smile her way, "you're supposed to be the brightest witch of our age yet you couldn't take the hint that I'm here on school-related business?"

"Well, what am I suppose to think when you, of all people, approach me," Hermione relaxed her shoulders only slightly more, "we were never on good terms."

Malfoy's smile or tiny lip curl, she couldn't tell, easily fell flat and solemn. It became clear to her his "friendly" attitude was all really just a ruse to catch her off guard.

His motive still unclear.

Hermione's shoulders started to tense again with her grip on her wand tightening some more.

She waited for what he had to say next.

"Thought that could change," Malfoy finally muttered.

"Sorry?"

Hermione thought she didn't hear him clearly.

"With the new school year, I thought things could change," Malfoy said again looking down at his hands before fixing one of his shirt cuffs, "including relations with... others."

Was Malfoy serious?

Hermione's brows furrowed as she was at a loss. Draco Malfoy, her year-long bigoted bumbling bully, wanted to amend bad relations? She didn't really know how to respond as her mouth went slightly agape.

"You do realise... You're talking to a mudblood. I'm the last person you'd want to become friends with," Hermione scornfully said.

"All the more reason..." Malfoy quietly replied turning his head to the side, looking off somewhere down a book aisle.

There was another long silence between the two until Malfoy finally looked up at Hermione. He gave her the same stare from days before and not one word escaped his lips. A chill ran through Hermione that caused her to shudder but she lowered her wand to her side.

She knew better than to spark trouble if there were any, especially in the library. Quite reasonable, Hermione decided to listen to what Malfoy had to say without jumping to extreme conclusions.

She knew _he_ knew better than to do anything rash or else receive more scrutiny by Hogwarts students and possibly the whole wizarding community.

"What do you _really_ want Malfoy? Why did you come back to Hogwarts?" Hermione questioned.

She expected a nasty remark along the lines of him not having to answer to someone menial like herself, but none came. Instead, Malfoy looked away again.

"I can't sleep anymore."

Hermione's eyes widened in surprise. She wasn't expecting an answer to her query let alone something that felt too personal to share, even for a Malfoy.

"Why should I—"

"Thought you could relate."

Hermione found herself speechless. There were so many things she could yell at Malfoy for. For all the immature things he's done to her over the years and all the times he's acted like a wretched gargoyle.

"I could never relate to you. You yourself have made that very clear for many years and _now_ you're apologising? Bugger off, will you? I have no reason to listen to anything you say cause it does not and will not concern me."

Hermione had enough of him and started to pack her things fast so as to get rid of Malfoy and his brooding presence.

She didn't want to be anywhere near the git for it brought upon awful memories and managed to gather most of her books and scrolls of parchment papers into her arms. She wanted to leave as quickly and as neatly as possible.

She almost made it out of earshot of the Slytherin but evidently heard him speak up again.

"Granger, wait," called Malfoy as he turned around to face her.

Hermione stopped only to contemplate on whether what he would say next was worth listening to.

"I know I've been a foul and loathsome prat that shouldn't even be here right now trying to earn your forgiveness. In fact, it goes against my very nature. Why should I even bother?" Malfoy proclaimed, which caused Hermione to turn her head slightly in his direction.

"Then I remembered where it all led to. All the hate and pent-up aggression. I wasn't a good person and regret the pathetic things I've done. I can't sleep at night because of it."

Hearing his words was almost reassuring but she wasn't gullible. She turned sharply in her spot and gave Malfoy a sharp look as she spoke.

"You think you've got it bad? Have you ever once considered all those poor and innocent souls you and your lot destroyed and torn apart? It's been nothing but a living hell for good magical beings alike. _Now_ you have the nerve to speak for forgiveness from the one mudblood you chose to torment for years on end?"

Hermione's neck and cheeks glowed red with anger.

"Tell me why exactly I should give you the slightest chance of reprieve."

There was a short silent pause before Malfoy began to explain himself.

"Like you've said, you are one of many good magical beings that deserve a valued apology," Malfoy voiced with a thoughtful look on his face.

"So why don't you go and beg for forgiveness from someone else? Why me?"

Hermione was fighting back the shakiness in her voice. She wasn't prepared to face Malfoy like this.

"Because I know you understand what I'm going through right now. You're not like others who would turn away a former death eater without considering their possible want and need to change. You're reasonable and kind and would never discriminate against anyone because you've been on the receiving end, you know how it feels—"

"Stop, just stop," Hermione pleaded as her books were slowly slipping from her grasp.

This prompted Malfoy to move toward her without her realising. He consciously pushed against the backs of the book covers she carried to relieve some of the weight for her and she inhaled sharply.

She was shocked to feel a different kind of chill, the kind that travelled throughout her body in a fleeting way. But that wasn't the only thing that surprised her. Malfoy standing so close to her with no immediate violent reaction from herself did.

She couldn't move away.

"I just want to atone for my actions and start new. Then maybe, the nightmares will stop."

Silence.

Then Hermione loudly exhaled and carefully shook her head for what she was about to say.

For a while, they stared at each other with meaningful eyes. Up close, Hermione could see the dark circles under Malfoy's orbs that mirrored her own. Nights without sleep were evident. But through his sheer like gaze alone, she could see more. She could see regret and the dark thoughts that for weeks, months even, ate him up from the back of his mind. She could see the cowardice in its wake as it clouded his vision but most of all she could see the pain that followed.

If she were Ron, she wouldn't have been standing with him to hear his pleas in the first place.

If she were Harry, she wouldn't have pitied him so easily.

Malfoy was right. She was a good magical being, a brilliant witch who was neither the boy who lived or his loyal best friend. She was simply Hermione who would do the right thing in situations like these.

She would forgive and forget.

Hermione sighed aloud and carefully reached for her wand. Malfoy stood back and watched her wordlessly charm her books and scrolls to levitate beside her before giving him a determined look.

"I... forgive you. But that doesn't mean we're friends," Hermione said with her head held high.

"Why can't we be?" Malfoy genuinely asked.

"Well, because you'll have to prove to me how much you've changed and are willing to change. Habits don't go away in an instant, especially bad ones. It'll take some time for me to come to terms with— _this_ —so by the meantime, I hope you could—"

"Show you some decency and behave."

Malfoy gave Hermione an impish smile as he finished her slight ramble which caused her to blush from embarrassment.

"Exactly," Hermione quietly quipped.

There was another silence but it was short lived because Malfoy had stuck out his hand to her.

"What's this?" Hermione questioned as she looked at his outstretched hand.

"I intend to follow through on my words and yours," Malfoy explained.

Hermione considered what it meant. The idea has never once crossed her mind and now it was her reality. She was going to shake hands with Draco Malfoy because together they were going to possibly put an end to all of the bad blood between them both.

Hesitant at first, Hermione finally decided to reach out and firmly grasp his hand. She tried hard to ignore the tingling sensation that coursed throughout her arm when they made contact and instead focused on his determined look before she spoke again.

"Promise me you've changed and aim to be a better person," Hermione pleaded.

"I give you my word."

* * *

 _AN: The end is not an Unbreakable Vow as you need a third party for that._


	6. Chapter Six

_Hermione frantically ran through the heavy thickets that covered the forest floor surrounded by nothing but trees. She flung hexes behind her as she ran having no particular target, only eager to escape the approaching danger._

 _She didn't know who or what was chasing her but didn't want to stick around to find out._

 _She continued to sprint through the eerie forest from her dream nights before and was suddenly faced with a dark figure blocking her path. Quickly, she hexed the form in hopes to end the chase once and for all but the direct hit began to disperse into a shrouded black mist that immediately surrounded her body._

 _Hermione panicked, unable to set herself free like prey caught in a trap. All she could think of at that moment was to run as far away from the swarm and willed her body forward. The frenzy would not relent and eventually tripped her up._

 _The moment she fell flat on her face, everything went dark._

Parvati Patil was making her bed when Hermione suddenly woke up. The girl peeked over at Hermione with a sombre look before she continued to straighten out her covers. Hermione could see she was already dressed in her school robes and was just about to head out for breakfast.

"You all right?" Parvati asked calmly as she fluffed her pillow.

"Er—yeah, I'm fine."

Hermione decided it was about time she got ready as well and pulled her covers off of her legs. The nightmare, however, had greatly affected her to the point she was left exhausted and barely able to move. Sitting there as she watched the other girl make her bed grew a bit awkward.

"You know... I still get them too," Parvati quietly confessed.

Hermione looked over at the girl with wide eyes but was not shocked to hear this. Parvati had been there duelling at the Battle of Hogwarts. She had witnessed the horrendous events that took place and was there when her good friend Lavender Brown had unfortunately passed.

"Parvati," Hermione called out to her as the girl finished and made her way toward the door.

Parvati stopped when she heard her name and turned to look back.

"How do you... deal with them?"

Hermione was curious because not once since their arrival did she hear the girl scream herself awake.

"Sleeping Draught. I drink some from time to time but I make sure I don't get used to it. Lately, it hasn't been a problem so it's been a while since my last dosage. I recommend you try some," Parvati advised but with an air of uncertainty, "it might help with the... nightmares."

"Thanks, I'll try that."

Parvati gave Hermione a small smile and nodded before she left.

Completely alone, Hermione considered the girl's advice and couldn't believe she hadn't thought of it before.

* * *

Hermione headed straight to the Hospital Wing once her morning classes were finished. Madam Pomfrey was the person to visit for situations like these and so she wasted no time trying to alleviate her nightmares.

"What can I do for you, Miss Granger?" Madam Pomfrey asked while tending to a homesick first-year boy.

"I was wondering if it was all right to... ask you for some sleeping draught."

Hermione looked nervously around at some other students who were all too invested in their own ailments to notice her.

Madam Pomfrey gave some potion to the first year to drink and proceeded to walk to another student, a fourth year, as she motioned Hermione to follow. The matron was quite the gifted multitasker as she paced on.

"Rough nights?"

Madam Pomfrey laid the fourth year down upon her hospital bed and tucked her in before closing the curtain around her. Hermione could see the student's face was pale but didn't exactly know what was wrong with her.

"Yes. Ever since I came back to Hogwarts."

Madam Pomfrey finally looked up from the clipboard she had in her hand the entire time and paused just outside her office to examine Hermione. Her stoic face softened into a concerned expression.

Hermione quickly began to feel that asking for a phial sounded like a bad idea.

"I was beginning to wonder when the golden trio's heroine would finally visit me for some peace and quiet," Pomfrey said as she placed a gentle hand on Hermione's shoulder.

Hermione's lips parted slightly but she made no sound. She averted her gaze downward, timid.

"I-I never thought I'd need—"

"It's all right, sometimes the best people need a little help behind the scenes. Wait here and let me go grab you a phial," Madam Pomfrey assured Hermione as she walked into her office.

After some time, the matron came back out and handed a full phial of sleeping draught to Hermione.

"Oh, I don't think I need this much. Just for a night, maybe?"

Madam Pomfrey's brow raised at the Gryffindor's hesitation.

"Miss Granger, it's okay to use as much as you need if it helps you sleep normally again. In fact, many of the older students here have already come by to take a couple phials, I had to brew stocks load," Seeing as Hermione's face still looked rather unsure, Madam Pomfrey placed another gentle hand on her shoulder, "I, myself use them from time to time."

Hermione's eyes widened to hear such a fact.

"I didn't know," Hermione voiced as she turned the small bottle in hand analysing the label, "thank you, Madam Pomfrey."

The older woman gave Hermione a small hug before shooing her away to tend to new students entering the hospital wing.

"Don't be a stranger!" She last called to her as Hermione walked through the wing's giant entrance to head for her dorm.

As Hermione leisurely walked through the stone halls of the viaduct courtyard, she could see the black plaque had made its way standing at the centre. An instant chill coursed throughout her body as she stared at its ever-looming presence and all she could think of was how no one will be able to play gobstones in the yard for a while.

Suddenly, not too far from the structure, Hermione could see students scurrying away from some slight commotion. She narrowed down the source and found two six-year Slytherin boys jabbing a younger student.

She would never tolerate bullying of any kind and as a prefect, had to maintain order within the school's corridors and quickly made her way over to the three.

"Look how stupid—"

"What is going on here?" Hermione loudly interrupted.

The Slytherin boys were taller than she'd expected but she stood her guard as she tried to figure out the situation.

"Why don't you just mind your own business?" The smaller of the two spat.

"This _is_ my business. Are these two harassing you?" Hermione asked the scared younger boy.

She was surprised to see he was a Slytherin himself and that this treatment was happening in their own house but it didn't deter her from resolving the conflict.

The boy wouldn't answer and so the two older students pushed him out of the way. The boy used this chance to escape quietly and out of their reach to her relief.

"So what? A little punch here and there should toughen the chap up a bit, don't you think Hotch?" The taller boy jeered.

The assumed Hotch snickered in response.

"Just cause you're a prude little prefect, you think you could tell us off?"

The two started to advance in on Hermione to intimidate her but she wouldn't budge. Nothing like two idiots she couldn't handle. As long as the kid ran off to safety she didn't have to hold back.

"That and more. Sadly, detention doesn't seem quite fitting," Hermione sneered right back.

"Too bad the war's over. Would've been a sight to see where a _mudblood_ belonged. Y'know, in the mud, spewing plenty of dirty blood."

Hermione's stomach lurched but she knew better than to recklessly relieve the sudden itch in her hand.

"I've heard better," Hermione sardonically stated.

The look of immediate disgust graced both boys. It was quite satisfying, to say the least.

"Fuck off or you'd wish you never came here," the same boy threatened, reaching for his wand.

And before Hermione could retaliate, a stern voice came from behind the boys.

"Ten points from Slytherin."

The two six years swiftly turned around and revealed a serious looking Malfoy with his hands in his robe pockets. They and Hermione sported the same shocked expression.

"You've turned mental, mate? _Ten fucking points_ from your own house?" The boy snarled back at Malfoy.

"And battering up a kid from the _same_ house isn't worse? How pathetic," Malfoy drawled.

"Watch it, or we'll have to roughen you up like the kid and little miss mudblood-filth here," the boy chimed in angrily.

"I'd watch that mouth of yours or I'll deduct another ten along with your detentions," the two bullies' fists started to clench while their faces started to contort into very unpleasant expressions, "fifteen each if you don't walk away."

Hotch bawled out in fury but did nothing while the other patted him on the shoulder to calm him down.

"Fine. Who would've thought that Malfoy became such a tosser for his new mudblood girlfriend? Let's go Hotch."

The boy made sure to bump shoulders with Malfoy as he and Hotch left the scene. Malfoy only stood his ground and didn't look after them.

Hermione was left speechless at the whole scenario. Malfoy actually did what was right and she couldn't have been more confused by his actions.

"You all right?" Malfoy finally asked Hermione once the bullies were out of earshot.

"I could've handled that," she flatly expressed.

"I know," Malfoy assured her before he started to leave from where he came from.

Hermione considered calling out to him but held back and watched him go.

Had he really changed?

* * *

Late afternoon, back in potions, Hermione, Ginny, Malfoy, and Zabini quietly awaited for instructions to their group assignment.

"Good afternoon class! Beautiful weather outside. A wonderful time to start on your first assignment as a group, I'd say," Professor Slughorn echoed for everyone to hear.

Hermione watched Ginny roll her eyes in contempt. Since the first day of class, whenever she could, the girl would visit Slughorn and try and convince him to change group members but failed each time. In fact, her persistence made him more keen on having the group work together to her utter dismay.

Hermione couldn't blame her for trying though, as she looked at how Zabini eyed Ginny.

"Now, I want you all to know, I'm a pretty fair fellow when it comes to awarding what you rightfully deserve. But of course, there's the kicker. You must show me how rightfully commendable you are by brewing top quality potions, within your groups, for the entire year."

A scatter of noises erupted from the students that Slughorn had to raise both his arms to quiet them down.

"I think a phial of this would get you most excited and on track to a successful year-end career here at Hogwarts," Slughorn encouraged as he pulled out a tiny bottle of golden liquid from his front robe pocket, "Recognise this?"

Almost every stare in the classroom locked eyes on the bottle Slughorn held between his thumb and forefinger.

 _Felix Felicis._

"Liquid Luck," Slughorn announced, "your first major assignment as a team."

The professor continued to instruct his bewildered classroom on what would be happening for the next six months. As groups, they will brew different potions each week and will be graded on their performance as a whole. Alongside those smaller less time-consuming brews, they will have to manage the major assignment of perfecting a small complicated batch of Felix Felicis.

"Challenging it may be, you are all in an N.E.W.T. level course. I should expect you to do well and more with what I have in store," Slughorn finalised.

"Er- Professor! And the liquid luck? You mentioned awarding us after we produce such a highly advanced potion," asked an eager Ravenclaw girl.

"Of course! I wouldn't forget the most important part. You will be awarded outstanding grades, hopefully, and your very own phial of liquid luck," cheers erupted all around, "from the very batches you create."

And suddenly there was silence.

"What do you mean?" A Hufflepuff boy spoke up.

"Well, hopefully, your idea of a reward is looking back on your own hard work and dedication. It should be work you and the members of your group are proud to call a crowning achievement. I'd expect if you want a perfect phial of Felix, you'll work hard to brew a perfect phial of Felicis in return. To put it in short, you get what you give," Slughorn said lastly before urging everyone to start.

Hermione took a quick glance toward Malfoy as everyone was still trying to comprehend the coursework. She could see him staring intensely at the professor but with no scowl or contempt crossing his features. She found it out of character for him but didn't ponder it any further once their eyes met.

Hermione sharply turned toward their table causing her to bump harshly into the edge. She opened her mouth in pain and Ginny had to grab her wand from rolling off the table.

"You all right there Granger?" Malfoy asked with a smirk smeared across his face.

Zabini had the same expression on his face as the two walked around the table to their spots.

Hermione held onto her throbbing hip and needed a second to compose herself.

"Can't _wait_ to start is all," she sarcastically replied.

Malfoy and Zabini were amused by her response but had soon turned serious once Slughorn announced he'll be walking around the room to see how the groups were working.

"So, what's first?" Ginny asked, wanting to quickly get it over with for the day.

"Well, we need to gather the supplies. Two cauldrons, tools and then the ingredients," Hermione said knowing the procedure like she knew the back of her hand, "Ginny, you and I could go grab the ingredients and..."

"We'll set the table," Malfoy finished.

"Is that all right with you?" Hermione asked, unsure.

"As long as the redhead knows what ingredients to get, then yeah, I think we're good," Zabini chimed in.

Ginny was about to retort until Hermione pulled her arm in the direction of the potion cabinets.

Once the two girls were there, Hermione braced herself for Ginny's wrath.

"Who does he think he is?!" Ginny exclaimed mostly to herself than Hermione.

"Ginny, calm down. If you're going to yell whenever he says something, we won't be able to cooperate with each other. That's goodbye Felix and outstanding N.E.W.T. scores. Besides, you don't want to waste your breath on him, he's not worth it," Hermione lectured as she placed two jars into Ginny's arms.

"I know, it's just—it's unfair! Everyone else in this class gets to work with people they actually can get along with while we are stuck with an arrogant, conniving, little braggart!"

Hermione smiled in agreement and continued to listen to Ginny rant on about how much Zabini specifically annoyed her.

"Anyways, what's with Malfoy?" Ginny suddenly brought up, causing Hermione to almost drop a bottle, "I mean, he's surprisingly civil now given the years we've known him."

"I don't know," Hermione honestly confessed, recovering from her slight heart attack by the younger girl's query. For a second she thought Ginny had found out about her confrontation with Malfoy but was quickly reassured that wasn't the case.

"Well whatever it is, watch your back. He might be waiting for the perfect moment to ruin us all," Ginny exclaimed right before Zabini showed up next to her, startling her out of her wits.

"What's taking so long?" Zabini annoyingly inquired.

"We're brewing more than one potion here, so be patient," Ginny retorted.

"Should've known you wouldn't be able to get our ingredients promptly," Zabini said, grabbing the two jars from Ginny's grasp before returning to their table.

Ginny's ears grew pink in response but before she could run and tell the Slytherin off, Hermione immediately replaced them with two new jars and told the girl they were done and could head back themselves.

When they made it back, Hermione could see the entire table was set perfectly for brewing. Two cauldrons were heated under small flames and the implements used for slicing and grinding the ingredients were set.

The only thing left to do was to start, like many of the other groups that already did.

"So, _what's first_?" Zabini asked smirking Ginny's way.

Ginny glared back, not saying a word in return.

"Well, if we do everything precisely, one step at a time, we could—"

"There are two potions here Granger, we can't do things one step at a time or else we won't get to one of them in time," Zabini interrupted.

"Well if you're not careful, we could ruin everything. We wouldn't want that now, would we?" Ginny snidely remarked.

Zabini raised his hands in the air and quieted down as if surrendering. He didn't put up much of a fight and only stared at Ginny to see what else she would do and say. The girl crossed her arms in response and looked at Hermione and waited for her to finish what she had in mind.

"Well, you bring up a good point. We have one potion that needs to be done by the end of this period and one that if we take too long to start, won't result in its best form since the ingredients used at the beginning need to be fresh," Hermione explained.

Ginny hesitantly dropped her crossed arms, annoyed as she glared at Zabini's smug look.

"Then what do you suppose we do?" Ginny mainly directed at Zabini.

"We could assign roles," Malfoy finally chipped in, "and then we could split into pairs. One pair works on the Felix Felicis while the other works on the day's potion assignment. And every other day we could switch off."

Everyone in the group silently looked between each other and seemed to agree unanimously.

The pairs were collectively decided amongst themselves, Hermione and Ginny started the Felix Felicis while Malfoy and Zabini started on the potion assignment. Zabini was in charge of stirring, Malfoy was in charge of slicing and cutting, Ginny ground while Hermione portioned everything that would be thrown in the cauldrons for the day.

It was a group process that Hermione thought functioned brilliantly as everyone did their jobs effortlessly. By the middle of the period, they were all too focused on their own work.

Hermione, too engrossed, not minding her surroundings, had accidentally grazed Malfoy's hand with hers as she tried to reach for already cut ingredients. She instantly felt a tingling sensation climb up her arm from her fingers and flushed pink from how abrupt and cold his skin felt. She looked his way for his reaction and only found his trademarked smirk but not directed at her. He was surprisingly still focused on his work and remained to himself, moving as if she had never touched him.

This Malfoy was quite unpredictable that she nearly forgot the old Malfoy and his rude behaviour prior. Getting back to work, she could almost smile at the notion.

 _Almost_.

By the end of the period, their teamwork had paid off. They were the only group that had exceeded expectations and were nearly perfect in brewing.

When Slughorn mentioned such an achievement to the class, it reminded him of something he always kept dear to himself.

"Before you all leave me today, I'd like to remind you all of the start of this year's Slug Club. I can assure you the first meeting will come soon and I'm scouting for potential members."

Some students looked excited while others mostly packed their things and had already left for their next class before he could finish. Slughorn didn't seem to care as he eyed Hermione's group interestingly.

"Now I know Miss Granger, Miss Weasley and Mr Zabini here are welcomed anytime," he said as he approached the four, "but there is always room for more."

Slughorn directed his interest in none other than Malfoy.

"Mr Malfoy, I've noticed your skills in potions have remarkably improved. Along with your great cooperation working with your group, I think it's about time you've earned your spot in the Slug Club. What do you say?"

Hermione, Ginny, and Zabini looked at Malfoy for a reaction to this sudden invitation. Slughorn was quite the bold character.

"Thanks but I think I'll have to pass," he answered matter of factly.

"Well, if you ever reconsider, I'll keep you up to date with the club's plans."

Slughorn joyfully patted the fellow Slytherin on his shoulder, not particularly fazed by his response, and left for his office.

Hermione and Ginny sported the same confused look as it wasn't a secret that years before Malfoy had tried to sneak his way into the Christmas party. Why deny his free pass of actually being a member of the Slug Club?

Hermione barely had time to ponder as Ginny urged her to help put away some things before they'd all be late for their next class.


	7. Chapter Seven

Hermione stood still and watched as the water rippled from the thin rock she threw in her hand. She was skipping stones since class had ended and was outside with Luna relaxing at the edge of the Great Lake. The quirky Ravenclaw was sitting in the grass drawing something on a small canvas while Hermione threw rocks for the past hour trying to figure out what to say to Harry and Ron about Malfoy after reading their letters.

Harry's letter to her was short and to the point, detailing the start of his training as an Auror and sending his love while Ron's letter was saved for last. She kept a genuine smile when she read it as it was undoubtfully him. His rare soft and honest side showed as he addressed her not only as a friend but as someone precious to him.

The letter read:

 _Dear Hermione,_

 _Hi._

 _First time we won't be seeing each other daily and I already miss you like crazy. I'm trying not to sound too sappy since George is over my shoulder as I write this. He says hello by the way. So did mum and dad._

 _Anyways, I've got exciting news to share. I'll be starting Auror training with Harry by the time you read this and I can't help but be bloody nervous about what to expect. I wish you were here with me right now to ramble on about anything to keep my mind off it. Not only are you a pretty distraction but you calm me whenever I hear your sweet voice._

 _How about a howler or two? Nothing like a good old Ronald is exhilarating._

 _Kidding. Just kidding. Sorry._

 _Harry thought if I added that part it'd give you a good smile. I sure hope it did or I'll have to bludgeon the git for telling me that._

 _Bloody hell._

 _Tell me if it does, okay? I trust that it will but who am I to say? I just really miss you, Hermione. Write back to me about everything that's happened so far. Okay? About the professors and students. About Hagrid and Ginny! Well not too much about her, I don't want the details. But about everything else. I want to know if you're having a good time there without us. I'm hoping you are with the new changes to the school and all._

 _Remember, I'll be reading all your letters as promised._

 _I'm just an owl away._

 _Currently missing you, Ron._

After reading the letters, Hermione couldn't decide whether or not to mention Malfoy at all. She knew she couldn't keep it a secret from her best friends but also didn't want to disappoint them. She felt she was slightly betraying them even though she knew she wasn't being wrongful.

At least with Luna by her side, she could confide in someone else when she herself didn't have the answers to her own problem.

"I just don't know where to start. They'll be sceptical and then when they find out it's true, furious! I'm sure of it," Hermione said as she threw another stone, "well, maybe Harry will understand, but Ron? He'll never speak to me again."

Hermione dropped down onto the grass and wrapped her arms around her knees in despair. This was taking more of a toll on her than she had hoped.

"Don't you trust them?" Luna asked in her dreamy voice.

Hermione turned to look at the blonde still deeply engrossed with her drawing. Her way of comforting, in general, was quite odd but at least she wasn't staring at Hermione like something was wrong with her.

"I do... I just don't want to burden them with this sudden news."

"I don't think it'll be any more a burden to them than it is to you now," Luna expressed, finally looking up at Hermione before showing her her drawing.

Hermione got up and walked over to the girl to peer down at her canvas. It was a quick sketch of Hermione and her bushy hair by the lake. But she wasn't skipping stones. Instead, the drawing depicted her standing in the middle of the water, dropping a stone she pulled out of her pocket and watching it sink. The sketch was bewitched to replay over and over again and Hermione was left confused. She looked up into the strange girl's eyes for an explanation.

"Peculiar, isn't it?" Luna replied before a voice called to the girls from afar.

"Luna! Hermione!"

Neville appeared from the distance holding a large potted plant in his arms, happy to see them as he walked over.

"That's an unusual looking Mimbulus Mimbletonia," Luna said as she examined the specimen.

"That's because it's a Sopophorous plant. I was just on my way to the Green Houses to deliver this to Professor Sprout until I saw you two down here. Would you like to join me?" Neville had a delightful smile on his face as he spoke of his favourite place at Hogwarts.

Hermione kindly turned down the offer as she remembered she had a Herbology essay to complete that Neville had already finished since it was first assigned. Luna on the other hand gladly took up on the offer to join him which caused Neville to blush in return. The two eventually left together leaving Hermione to herself.

It was about time she replied back to Harry and Ron.

* * *

It was the first Hogsmeade trip of the school year and Ginny had already planned to visit the town together with Hermione, Luna, and Neville. The girl thought it was crucial for the four of them to get some fresh air and have a little fun since all they ever did was worry and study their days away with school work and N.E.W.T. levels. She believed the weekends were for relaxing and enjoying what's left of a social life with friends in their last year and Hermione couldn't have agreed more.

By early noon, the four entered the Three Broomsticks, which had expanded since the war, to order some needed drinks and loosen up in its pleasant environment. The group managed to find a table by the window and cosied right into it, lucky enough to have found a spot comfortable for them to chat.

Since the expansion of the place, Madam Rosmerta had hired some waiters to take customer orders while she tended the fully crowded bar, a feature Hermione thought was great since it meant more business poured into the well-established pub.

When the waiter finally took their orders, he reassured the group that their drinks were all paid for by the bartender herself. Recognising the four as great war heroes, Madam Rosmerta gave Hermione and Ginny their butterbeer and Luna and Neville their gillywaters on the house.

The group was more than thankful for the kind gesture and delved right into their drinks and erupted into cheers, all except for Hermione who silently watched the many witches and wizards walk by the pub's window and enjoy their carefree day out in Hogsmeade.

It amazed Hermione how not too long ago this simple, joyful act was restricted out of fear in a time of darkness. But she was glad it was finally over and done for. Why must she continue to reminisce about it now? Why couldn't she just get over the painful memories?

As Hermione tried to push aside unwanted thoughts, she managed to spot out a certain Slytherin group head their way past the pub. Malfoy was walking with Zabini alongside two dainty looking Greengrass sisters. To anyone, it looked like a regular group of teenagers walking around in their leisure, but instinctually to her, it called for suspicious behaviour that needed to be supervised. And as a prefect, it was her job to find out where the group containing Draco Malfoy were headed to.

"Sorry but I've just remembered something I needed to... check up on," Hermione said as she tried to come up with an excuse to leave.

"Do you want us to come with you?" Ginny asked after taking a swig of her butterbeer.

"No, no you stay and have fun. It won't be long, I promise," Hermione vocalised before reaching in her pocket for some coins. She placed two sickles hard on the table as a tip and let Ginny have her mug of butterbeer and exited quietly from the pub.

Once outside, a cool breeze brushed past Hermione that caused her to tighten her hoodie around herself before she started to walk, determined to find the Slytherin group.

"I've gone absolutely mental," Hermione expressed to herself as she tried to avoid the window Ginny, Luna and Neville sat by in the Three Broomsticks.

Suspecting Malfoy of delinquent behaviour was one thing, but following him and his cronies was a serious accusation. In her own state of mind, she knew this was wrong and shouldn't have considered this at all, but ever since she'd watched a boy she loves and cares for assume the horrendous acts Malfoy had done in the past _and_ be right, she couldn't take any chances.

In a surprisingly short amount of time, Hermione managed to catch up to the group and eyed them as they entered the one place she felt more unease. She watched as the full head of platinum blonde hair was last to enter the Hog's Head and made a beeline for the pub.

Before she entered, however, she had to make herself less noticeable. She didn't want to draw attention to herself and pulled her hood, hiding her trademark bushy hair. When she entered the dingy pub, she immediately scoured the place for the students she'd been following.

Malfoy and his mates were sitting far in the back of the dirty place, barely seen from where she stood by the entrance. With no clear sight of the wizard, she had to find a reasonable spot to distance herself from him and sat down right at the bar. So far, no one seemed to have noticed Hermione and for the first time was quite grateful for the tavern's dim lighting.

The witch hadn't noticed that a certain bartender was observing her odd behaviour.

"What can I get you?" The grey-haired barman roughly asked.

"Er—one butterbeer please," Hermione quietly answered, glancing behind her from time to time.

With an audible sigh, the old grumpy looking man gathered a mug and continued to pour Hermione a pint of the popular beverage.

"You know, I don't take spying lightly here."

Hermione jumped a little in her stool as she finally recognised Aberforth, the owner of the Hog's Head, had brought out her drink.

"I'm sorry. I can assure you I'm not eavesdropping, more so keeping a careful eye on some... deviant students," Hermione clarified as she slid the pint of glass closer to herself, "I'm a prefect. I have my suspicions."

Hermione looked as if she weren't proud of what she spoke of and took a small sip of butterbeer and quieted down.

Aberforth stared at the witch and then followed her previous glances toward the group of Hogwarts students sitting at the corner of his pub.

"I don't mean to pry, but don't you have better things to do, girl?"

Hermione tugged on her sleeves from the chill she got being in the pub. She couldn't bring herself to look at the old man without remembering the events that took place not long before. She sighed and tucked away some fallen strands of hair behind her ear before answering.

"I do..." Hermione said as she willed herself to look up at the man with piercing blue eyes, "But right now, I need to know if Malfoy is doing anything other than socialising with his crowd."

Aberforth's brows furrowed at her response. But after a lengthy stare down he decidedly stood straight, took out a dirty glass to clean and scanned the room with his own eyes. After some time, he casually put away the glass in his hand and glanced Hermione's way.

"I see no wizard here with that disreputable name," Aberforth shortly said.

With this revelation, Hermione quickly turned to the group in the back and found that Aberforth was right. The group now only consisted of Zabini and the Greengrass sisters. Looking around the old room, there were no signs of familiar fair hair anywhere.

Hermione quickly got up and searched her pockets for some change. She managed to throw two sickles and a knut onto the counter before swiftly exiting the pub, leaving a confused barman to clean up her barely finished drink.

Hermione hugged herself some more as she stepped out into the cold streets of Hogsmeade. Searching the crowds and places nearby from where she stood, she could not find Malfoy.

Hermione sped her way down the street to backtrack. She was too busy caught up in her own thoughts she had no time to avoid colliding into a sturdy chest.

"Careful now, Granger," a familiar voice rang as she was held steady in place.

The collision made her hood fall back and hair spring out. Surprise immediately graced her delicate face at the sight of Malfoy.

"How did you—"

"You were following me," Malfoy promptly said with an amused face.

Hermione's heart pounded in her chest as he spoke. She didn't expect he'd find out. She pulled herself away from his grasp and stood there awkwardly before him, not sure on how to get out of this one.

"Was not," Hermione managed to come up with rather flatly.

"Oh really?"

Malfoy crossed his arms over his chest while he eyed the Gryffindor with a flick of intrigue in his eyes.

"Yes really. I was visiting a friend and you so happened to be there... at the Hog's Head."

Hermione couldn't look Malfoy in the face, not when she was obviously lying.

"The barman?" Malfoy asked still amused by her story.

"Actually... yes. Mr Dumbledore and I go way back."

Malfoy's small grin slowly disappeared.

"Is that right? And finding you here before me is just a coincidence then?"

Hermione could hear the tone in his voice change from playful to austere in a matter of seconds. It took her a full minute to realise that mentioning the name of their former Headmaster didn't entirely bring about pleasant memories.

"Look, I don't blame you for following me. You obviously couldn't trust—"

"No, no it's not like that."

"Then what could it possibly be? The reason why you've followed me here Granger."

Malfoy slid his hands into his pockets and straightened himself to his full height. Hermione noticed he was at least a foot taller than she was which intimidated her. She instinctually shrunk where she stood and tucked some more rogue hair strands behind her ear, nervous.

"I... I really wanted to stay back at the Three Broomsticks with my friends. Then I saw you pass by with Zabini and some girls and thought maybe you'd try something... brash. My judgment was wrong and I apologise for that," Hermione explained as she found the courage to look up into his steel grey eyes and speak the truth.

She figured why lie when honesty was on the line between two former enemies? Why go back on her word and distrust his actions even after he sworn change?

Malfoy raised a hand to his hair and ruffled his already messy locks. He looked somewhere off in deep contemplation before finally replying.

"I'll accept your apology," Malfoy said as he dropped his arm and placed both hands back into his pant pockets, "but only if you promise to trust me from now on."

Hermione's eyes widened. She wasn't sure what he meant by that.

"Why should I trust you? I barely know you," Hermione truthfully replied before she decided to walk away, past him and toward the Three Broomsticks. There was really no point in talking to him now that he'd found out the truth.

"Well if you took the time to, then maybe you could get to know me," Malfoy called out to her. She froze before she had the chance to leave completely out of sight and turned around to face him. His back was still turned to her. She couldn't see his expression as she stared intensely at his broad shoulders.

It seemed he wasn't finished with their conversation. Merlin knows why she continued to listen to him.

Furious, Hermione walked straight back to Malfoy.

"What if I don't want to? Do you need we become best friends to solve all your problems?"

She couldn't help but feel agitated as he stood, tall and arrogant, talking to her as if he really wanted to start trouble. The moment she thought she could finally tolerate his presence, he had to go and mess things up for her.

"I'm not doing this for my own sake, Granger. I thought that if we could get along, then maybe you'd be able to sleep peacefully again too. But I guess that was just wishful thinking," he said with only his head turned her way, his sideview solemn.

Before Hermione could retaliate, Malfoy started to walk back in the direction of the Hog's Head.

"Malfoy, wait," Hermione called out to make him stop in his tracks.

He halted but didn't turn her way.

"It's hard for me to trust you. I don't know how. I'm sorry," Hermione ultimately said with a slightly shaky voice, "I'm just trying to cope with everything but it hasn't been easy."

Malfoy turned around almost immediately after she finished, maybe to see her actually admit to why she's out of sort lately. He didn't speak but made it known he understood Hermione and walked straight up to her in spite of all the stares they got from passersby. His looming presence had spread through the air like a mist that it made her almost want to flee but she didn't. She stood her ground and watched as he stopped, barely a foot away, and pierced her eyes with his.

It was as if he was forcing her to look at him, to let him in.

"I've already forgiven you, but can you really forgive me?" Malfoy questioned with great significance. He pulled his right hand out of his pocket and unconsciously reached for her with the back of his fingers, almost touching a strand still visibly covering her face until suddenly a sing-song voice called to Hermione.

"That girl with the mane _is_ 'Mione!" A slightly tipsy Ginny exclaimed, grabbing the attention of both Hermione and Malfoy instantly.

"Oi, 'Mione! We're gunna head back to Hoggywarts, wanna come?" Ginny loudly asked, gathering more stares from people.

Hermione could see that Luna and Neville both held one of Ginny's arms around their shoulders and were practically propping her up as the girl spoke on about something inaudible.

"Hey, isn't that Malfoy? Whaddya want with 'Mione?" Ginny drunkenly said, pointing at a slightly amused Malfoy.

"You guys go on without me, I'll catch up with you later," Hermione called back as to stop Ginny from saying or doing anything more embarrassing, "bring Ginny back safely!"

"Will do!" Neville called as he looked at Malfoy suspiciously before finally turning to head back to Hogwarts because Ginny was growing fidgety.

"Have fun!" Luna called before the trio were practically out of sight.

Hermione was left speechless and slightly abashed from such an abrupt moment. She couldn't have been more embarrassed.

But of course, there was more in store for her as another voice, one much deeper than Malfoy's spoke directly from behind her and nearly startled Hermione out of her wits. Turning, she was faced with Zabini looking on to where Ginny, Luna, and Neville once were with two Greengrass siblings behind him.

"So she's a lightweight?" Zabini asked no one in particular.

"Draco, what are you doing out here?" The girl named Daphne asked as she saw Malfoy by Hermione's side.

"She was beginning to worry about you," Astoria amusingly interjected, causing her older sister to blush.

"Taking care of some prefect business, I presume?" Zabini replied finally turning his gaze back in front of him and eyeing Hermione.

Malfoy didn't immediately respond. Instead, he retracted his hands back into his pockets and turned back to Hermione. He refused to speak a word it seemed.

"I didn't realise Granger was still a prefect," Daphne retorted as she too eyed Hermione.

"We shouldn't have interrupted them," Astoria spoke up before grabbing her sister's arm and pulling her in the direction of the school, "let's head in first. Blaise?"

Zabini only lingered around some more, eyeing the two prefects, before following the two girls back to Hogwarts. Hermione couldn't have felt more baffled than she was being near such a group of people. It fascinated and mystified her all at the same time and before she could bring herself to talk about such a weird encounter, Malfoy interposed.

"We should probably head back too. It's getting pretty late."

"Yeah," Hermione agreed before finding herself walking alongside Draco Malfoy.

She couldn't will herself to go ahead or stay behind. Hermione practically could care less at this point to what other's thought or would say about them and remained a good distance from the Slytherin for their entire walk back to school.

Never did she think the day would come where she could be seen walking with Malfoy.


	8. Chapter Eight

Monday came round the corner to everyone's dismay except for Hermione's. She was glad to get back to work even after her weird encounter over the weekend, but toned down her excitement once she began potions.

Another new task on a new day prompted her group to change partners. She found herself working alongside Malfoy on the Felix Felicis who between the two of them ultimately sliced the ingredients while she measured and threw them into the pot.

Ginny reluctantly worked alongside Zabini on the day's potion assignment, showing everyone how much she despised him with her perfectly ground ingredients smashed so well it was frightening. Zabini, of course, took this opportunity to taunt the girl.

"You should watch the way you grind that. You're starting to resemble a red cap," Zabini lightly teased.

Hermione could see the fire in the girl's eyes ignite before she pointed her pestle at the smug looking Slytherin.

"Give me a good reason why I shouldn't bludgeon you to death with this?" Ginny loudly retorted.

Students looked her way as she threatened her teammate but went back to their own work once Slughorn walked by.

"Come again, Miss Weasley?" Professor Slughorn asked, unaware of the commotion amongst the two opposing partners.

"Just friendly banter, sir," Zabini surprisingly replied.

"Oh, well I don't mind that at all. I hear it's good practice for bickering teammates. Gives them a chance to make up wonderfully. As long as your work is completed in an orderly fashion, you may proceed," Slughorn gleefully said as he patted both Zabini and Ginny's shoulders.

Her sharp glare never left Zabini's pompous face.

"Ginny, please calm down. We have to get the murtlap essence finished," Hermione urged before she turned to a grinning Zabini, " and can you please stop goading her? She's put up working with you so far. The least you could do is leave her be."

Zabini raised his hands into the air in a defeated stance, a motion he has done once before.

"My apologies, I didn't realise her sensitivity would affect our work progress," he arrogantly said before he reached for some already ground ingredients, "would you please pass the fluxweed, _Ginevra_?"

Both Ginny and Hermione were taken aback by his sudden use of her given name. Ginny, who looked as if she wanted to dismember the boy quickly on the spot glanced at Hermione who urged her to comply.

"Thank you," Zabini uttered as he grabbed the small mortar from her. Ginny quickly retracted her hand from the slight skin contact and went back to work.

Once Hermione got back to her own job, Malfoy finally spoke up.

"I'm done here."

He handed Hermione his small cutting board with precise cuts of murtlap tentacles to add to the Felix Felicis.

Hermione began to measure how much was needed but was handed over more ingredients by Ginny to examine. The younger girl exclaimed she had finished grinding and would gladly watch Zabini stir their cauldron until it was finished.

Zabini responded with a grin that made Ginny bashfully look away.

"Need help?" Malfoy asked Hermione as he saw the workload she had to do.

"No, I have it," Hermione verbalised as she continued to place ingredients on the brass scales under his silent watch.

Feeling the pressure, she didn't realise her measurement was a little off until Malfoy gently grabbed her wrist to stop her from pouring the ingredients into the cauldron.

"You might want to measure that again," Malfoy informed.

"But this is the right amount," Hermione said a little hesitant but soundly sure.

"Let me recheck it."

Before Hermione could respond, Malfoy had already charmed the scale over to his side of the table and carefully took the portion from her hand to measure. Hermione watched as he shaved some cut ingredients off of what she already had and continued to pour his re-evaluated cuts into the cauldron.

Hermione waited anxiously for the cauldron to explode or turn a nasty colour but it did not. She was shocked to have almost ruined their batch of liquid luck and immediately apologised for not measuring the ingredients properly. Malfoy reassured her it was fine.

Hermione, now determined, continued to properly measure the rest of her ingredients once she was given back the scale.

Wanting to accurately portion everything with no interferences, Hermione searched her bag for a hair tie to tie back all of her hair. When she couldn't find any on her wrists or in her bag she asked Ginny for a possible spare.

"Sorry Hermione, I only have one," said the redhead who pointed to her ponytail.

Hermione was left to cope with her curly mane and continued on with her work, trying to ignore the fallen strand of hair framing her face as she did so. It didn't bother her as much as she thought it would but it seemed it did for a certain Slytherin standing across from her. Malfoy reached out to her when no one was looking and tucked the strand behind her ear to her absolute astonishment. She flushed from the contact before quickly avoiding his short gaze, not knowing how to respond.

He went back to focusing on his own work to even notice her reaction, to her relief. Though she had failed to catch his wandless incantation in the process.

Within seconds, Hermione's tresses rose away from her face and tied itself up into a ponytail with small white flowers appearing in place of a hair tie. She quietly squealed from the sudden use of magic and glared immediately at Malfoy who still appeared busy.

Everyone else in the room was notably unaware of what had transpired except for a Ravenclaw girl who told Hermione she loved the look and stated the flowers were really pretty on her. Hermione shyly thanked the girl before forcibly glowering at Malfoy to look back at her for an explanation. She wasn't dumb to figure he was the cause of such an incantation.

After some moments of intense staring, Malfoy finally looked up from his cutting board with an innocent look.

"What is _this_?" Hermione harshly asked, loud enough for only his ears to hear.

His eyes moved to where she pointed to the top of her head.

"Little white flowers?" Malfoy answered, feigning oblivion.

"Yes, and who was the one who conjured them?"

Malfoy looked as if he finally got what she was saying.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't you in need of a hair tie?"

"Yes, but _this_ isn't a hair tie!" Hermione exclaimed as quietly as possible.

"A _thank you_ would have sufficed," Malfoy haughtily said, "besides, it looks good on you."

His sudden remark silenced Hermione into a beet red face that didn't want to look at him anymore. She quietly continued with her work flustered until the very end of the period.

When class was dismissed, Hermione had gathered the courage to try and speak with Malfoy before he left. She found the perfect opportunity to approach him as he was one of many students last to exit the classroom.

"Malfoy, can I speak with you?" Hermione called out.

Malfoy looked up in the middle of packing away his things into his schoolbag.

"Yeah, sure. But it has to be quick, Quidditch tryouts are starting."

Hermione watched as he neatly gathered his textbooks, quill, and wand in hand.

"Oh, I didn't know you were still going to play. Trying out for the seeker position again?"

Malfoy politely shook his head before he responded.

"I only became seeker to spite Potter who I really wanted to beat. It's just not my type of position."

This fact surprised Hermione and she continued to listen.

"I've actually played chaser every summer 'til now," Malfoy said as he swung his bag over his shoulder, "this is my last chance to play it for Slytherin."

Hermione was at a loss for words until Malfoy mentioned that she was the one who wanted to speak to him about something.

"I just wanted to say... thanks," Hermione ardently said as she pointed to her ponytail.

She faintly smiled at him then exited the classroom before he could, leaving him to stare curiously at her until she was no longer in sight.

* * *

Pink and orange hues smeared across the sky as evening started to roll in. Hermione chose this time to visit a good friend as she hadn't had a chance to since the beginning of the school year. As she sat on one of the big stools decorating Hagrid's hut, the half-giant himself was boiling some water for tea over by his large fireplace. He and Fang were both ecstatic to see Hermione and have her company for the first time in a long while. He was eager to hear about her, Harry's, and Ron's travels and arrangements.

"Yer don' know how much I missed yeh Hermione," Hagrid gleefully said as the large kettle in the fireplace whistled, "Fang misses yeh too."

The enormous drooling dog barked in agreement and Hermione cheerfully patted the creature's head.

"I've missed you too Hagrid, Fang," she rubbed the canine's sides which incited tail wags, "I wanted to come see you earlier but there were things I had to take care of."

"No worries, I understand yeh're busy. I'm busy meself teachin' again an' wha have yeh," Hagrid expressed as he poured some water into Hermione's giant mug of tea, "boy did I miss it."

"I'm glad you love it. I can't think of anyone better for the job," Hermione said endearingly, smiling brightly.

Hagrid frowned with awe and laughed off the sentiment with Hermione. The two drank their tea and enjoyed one another's company. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this warmth and started to reminisce about her school days with the boys. She would have visited Hagrid sooner if she knew it would relieve her emotionally.

"How's Harry and Ron? Haven' gotten word from 'em an' I sure miss 'em a lot," Hagrid asked.

"They're doing well, fantastic even. They're both right now in training to become full-fledged Aurors. Can you believe that?" Hermione could see the twinkle in the gamekeeper's eyes light up as she spoke of the two, "and they probably miss you as much as you miss them. They're just busier now having moved on with their lives, fortunately, happier doing the things they like," Hermione assured him while looking down into her cup, swirling the tea leaves at the bottom with her teaspoon.

"Well thas good ter hear!" Hagrid exclaimed, "but whadda 'bout yeh?"

Hermione's eyes quickly looked up from her cup to stare at Hagrid questioningly.

"What about me?"

"Are yer happy here Hermione? Bein' back here at Hogwarts?"

Hermione didn't automatically respond. He caught her off guard with such a loaded question she didn't know what to say. But after some contemplating and finishing her entire mug of tea, Hermione decided to confide in Hagrid.

"I should be. Hogwarts is my home and I love it here. But lately... I've been feeling rather distant and lonely. I know I still have Ginny, Luna, and Neville beside me, but it's just... not enough I suppose," Hermione reasoned with herself more so than to the half-giant.

"'s cause they're not Harry and Ron, yer bes' mates," Hagrid established before a lengthy pause, "so when yeh ever feel lonely, I wan yeh ter know that I'll always be here fer yeh. Yeh're welcome here anytime Hermione an' I promise to listen to everythin' yeh say. Well at leas' try ter."

Hermione didn't know what came over her but she found herself hugging Hagrid after swiftly jumping off her stool. He hugged her back fondly and told her some more things about being there for her whenever she felt like no one would be. Her eyes began to water but nothing came pouring down her face as the pleasant feeling overrode any doubts she had.

"Thank you, Hagrid. You're truly an amazing person I've had the _absolute_ honor to befriend," Hermione joyfully disclosed.

"Aw, Hermione yer gonna make me weep," Hagrid said looking upward as to not appear like he was about to cry, "whaddyer say we go visit another friend, eh?"

Hermione's eyes widened curiously but she eventually followed the enormous wizard out of his hut and toward the school's paddock. Her lips curled upward at the ends, delighted to see a certain creature stand elegantly behind the wooden enclosure.

"Buckbeak!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Witherwings, Hermione," Hagrid mentioned as she bowed before the creature and in return, it did the same.

"Sorry, I forgot. Hello there Witherwings, how've you been?" Hermione adoringly asked as she stroked the hippogriff's feathery neck.

"E's spoiled that one. Bu' never better," Hagrid proudly proclaimed, "Gonna show 'im ter me third years for the firs' time again termorrow. Bit nervous."

This prompted Hermione to remember the incident that dealt with an ignorant dolt and an innocently frightened hippogriff that almost ended dreadfully. But luckily all went well and Hermione understood why Hagrid would be anxious to show Witherwings again.

"I believe you'll be a wonderful instructor tomorrow," Hermione suddenly pronounced as she turned sharply toward Hagrid, "you're the only person who knows these creatures well enough to handle. So good in fact, I trust nothing will go wrong because the students will have your excellent guidance. Believe me Hagrid, you'll do fine, incredible even, so long as you don't have another ferret named Malfoy in one of your classes."

Hagrid burst out in joyful tears and gave Hermione one last bear hug before she finally had to head inside. As she waved goodbye to Hagrid, Fang, and Witherwings, she couldn't help but smile and reminisce about said ferret's deserving injury.

* * *

By nightfall, Hermione was called to patrol the corridors and her section of the castle to check for any late night wanderers. When she arrived to check in with the Head Boy, she was surprised to see Malfoy as he wasn't scheduled to patrol whenever she did. It turned out one of the other prefects had some sort of problem with their schedule, and offered to trade theirs with Malfoy who was available.

Of course, fate had the two working at the same time.

Luckily for her, Malfoy was assigned an entirely different section of the castle which meant her chances of bumping into him as she patrolled were slim. This fact made her feel better and more eager to start as she'd be left alone to do as she pleased.

The beginning of her patrol went by smoothly. She came upon a couple students lingering after hours but a stern warning had them fleeing for their dorm rooms in no time. There were a couple of older students she found in empty classrooms, hallways and crevices doing Merlin knows what in the dark, but she didn't have to say a single word to them when they were caught red-handed. The mortified looks on their faces told her everything as they all ran back to where they were supposed to be. She wondered how they were able to get away with things like this when Hogwart's ghosts frequently roamed around, especially a mischievous Peeves who tend to snoop through the walls.

The entire act of being caught out late didn't bother her however as she felt there was no need to be so fussy during the quiet of night. A year ago Hermione would have thought otherwise, but present-day Hermione could really care less. As long as the students didn't do anything illegal, she would remain lenient.

It wasn't until the end of her patrol neared did she find herself in an odd situation.

She happened upon two older students, snogging away in a classroom. They didn't seem to notice her when she entered which prompted Hermione to awkwardly cough to notify them of her presence.

To her utter surprise, she found the Slytherin Quidditch Captain Theodore Nott, roughed up against a fellow Slytherin girl she recognised in Ginny's year. The girl's school blouse was unbuttoned to a very revealing level while her skirt was hitched high up her legs, thighs overly exposed. Nott shared the same dishevelled look with his glasses askew and clothes in disarray but didn't look as mortified as the girl did. In fact, he looked quite pleased with himself as he slowly straightened out his collar and shirt sleeves all while the girl scurried fast pass Hermione and was immediately out of sight.

"I advise you start leaving like your partner has," Hermione sternly warned as she watched the Slytherin continue to arrange his clothes neatly upon himself.

"I must say, you caught me in a very uncompromising position," Nott said, ignoring her heed.

"This is my final warning or accept a detention, Nott."

He paused for a moment to look at her for the first time.

"Prissy much? Don't worry, I'm leaving," Nott replied as he buttoned up the last of his undone buttons and walked over to Hermione by the door.

He stopped beside her, however, and turned curiously to face her. Hermione cautiously turned his way as well, ready to handle any funny business.

"I just want you to know that you have no effect on me. I'll gladly take a detention or two. Then one day, I'll just complain to my Head of House about how unfair you hand out punishments and see how everything goes from there," Hermione's eyes widened in response, "so I'll let it slide for now as you did with so many of the students before me tonight because unlike you, I'm nice."

Before he could walk away, Hermione responded.

"What are you getting at, Nott?"

Hermione knew his type had ulterior motives that had to be peeled back, one layer at a time to figure out. It was obnoxious but she had to deal with it as the good prefect she was.

"I'm just wondering why two of my best players were ejected from my team, _Granger_. Does Frances and Hotch ring a bell?"

Nott was practically towering over Hermione, trying to belittle her with his broad build as his tone grew angrier. But she wasn't intimidated. Highly annoyed, yes, but she's handled boys, even men, like him before and wasn't afraid to defend herself.

"You can't blame me when two of your teammates are floundering idiots that deserved what they got for messing with a first year," Hermione informed, "but beside the point, why would I have anything to do with their dismissals?"

"Those wankers didn't show up to their detentions you assigned them and then again when they were assigned a week's worth. They were eventually kicked out of the team by the _lovely_ Headmistress herself, " Nott retorted as if it were all her fault, "because of you, my team roster had to be readjusted."

"What a shame. If only they had shown up to their detentions maybe they would still be on the team," Hermione sarcastically remarked, "or... stop bullying for the hell of it, then maybe they wouldn't have gotten into trouble in the first place!"

Hermione could see no reason why any of their misfortunes were her fault. It was like they didn't understand the concept of consequences following bad decisions and it made her question how smart Slytherins truly were.

The look on Nott's face went from furious to delightful if you could call it that, in a matter of seconds. She could have sworn she struck a nerve and held her wand tight beside herself, ready to defend when the moment arose. Though surprisingly the moment did not come and Hermione was left confused as to why Theodore Nott was smiling.

"That's a bit presumptuous of you to say, especially when the two students you so happen to be talking about are Slytherin."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Hermione asked.

"Let's face it, you think all Slytherins are bad or bullies that couldn't pick up a handle of a broomstick if there were two on both ends. Just cause you're a prefect you think you got the right to go after us now, do you? I mean, it's only fair, you've won the war."

Hermione needed a moment to process his words.

"I only reprimand those who do wrong and—"

"Who says you can decide what's right or wrong? The way I see it, it's a matter of classifying those who are just different from you. Pureblood or not," Nott circled Hermione as she stood there in contemplation, "Can you honestly tell me that Slytherins aren't the odd ones out of the four houses, hm?" Nott asked standing in front of her, waiting for an answer.

No words could escape her mouth. All she could think of were the times she acquainted herself with students from other houses that were not Slytherin. Walking down the halls Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs socialised among themselves but not the Slytherins. Since the war, they've become more distant and only stayed within their crowd. Not once did she stop to think they might've felt alienated from the entire school.

"You've finally realised it huh?" Nott said as he noticed her eyes widen, "I don't blame you."

Before she could reply to all of his insinuations, Nott had already made it to the door.

"Surprise! Slytherins aren't all moronic shites," Nott bitingly called out, "who knew?"

Hermione was left alone in the dimly lit classroom dumbfounded. For a while, she couldn't stop mulling over what he said and needed a moment to reflect. What he said tugged at her conscious and she didn't like it one bit. She sighed and left the room annoyed.

Although done with her patrol, Hermione took the opportunity to wander around alone, careful not to be seen by ghosts or other prefects making their way back to their dorms. She needed some time to herself and what better place to contemplate than the Astronomy Tower?

Hermione languidly made her way up the staircase, avoiding the Bloody Baron's descent. His presence would have usually given her eerie chills but tonight it didn't have so much of an effect.

As she climbed the last steps at the very top of the tower, Hermione was surprised to find a figure already leaning against the ramparts that led into the open night sky. Under the glow of the moon, a patch of silver hair shined and Hermione immediately knew who the mysterious figure was.

Just when she thought she could escape she always ended up back to him.

"Care to join me, Granger?" Malfoy called out without turning her way.

Hermione walked until she was beside him overlooking the vast landscape in the dead of night.

"How did you know it was me?" She calmly asked.

"You think loud," said Malfoy as he continued to stare off into the distance.

Hermione didn't delve too much into his reply and only marvelled at the sight of Hogsmeade. The tiny smudge of orange radiated off of the distant town as it was still awake, catering to the many older witches and wizards still up. She wondered if Hogsmeade ever slept and was quickly reminded that it once did, not too long ago.

"The sky's beautiful," Hermione said as she averted her gaze upward so as to forget about the memory.

From the corner of her eyes, she could see Malfoy shift his gaze as well and turned his head toward the sky.

"It is."

Hermione inhaled deeply as the silence roared heavily in her ears. The air made her visibly shiver which caused him to look her way.

"So... How was the tryout?" Hermione asked in an attempt to ease the awkward tension in the air.

"Surprised you remembered," Malfoy said as he turned around to lean back against the rampart, "it was arduous but I've managed to make it back on the team."

"With a captain like that, that's not so surprising," Hermione said re-mindful.

Malfoy's brow raised curiously as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Know him?"

"I-er... Had the pleasure of meeting him not too long before coming here," Hermione leaned a little forward to look down onto the castle's grounds, "so... you're a chaser now?"

Malfoy stared at Hermione with his head held down intriguingly.

"Yeah, I guess so."

Silence fluttered through the air again. She wondered how Nott trained his team since he was obviously in love with the sport. She wondered if he treated them fairly or was just as intense as Ginny was.

"Just curious, but how does Nott—"

"Hold up as captain? Hope you're not asking for Weasley," Malfoy suggested as he lifted his head to look at her straight in the face.

"No! No, it's not that... Well maybe, a little," Hermione swiftly turned to explain herself, "Ginny's been going on and on about how peeved she was with Nott leading Slytherin and I can't help but wonder how well he plays. I mean she's only ever like that against those who she considers _real_ opponents."

Malfoy smiled lightly and waved her off.

"I'm just messing with you. But she has the right idea, Nott is a very competitive wizard. It's only right that he plays so well," Malfoy untangled his arms and slid his hands into his pockets, "I've known him for some time now and all I can say is that he's very tactical when it comes to having everything go his way."

Hermione took what Malfoy said into deep consideration. For someone who was used to getting his way in the past say this about someone else more so was quite thought-provoking. She's only seen what Nott was like on the surface and could only imagine how he really was in full character.

"By the way, if you really want to see how well he drives the team, you'd have to attend the practices," Malfoy insisted.

Hermione's eyes found Malfoy's dark grey ones in the dim yet starry night. The distance between the two closed in ever so slightly without her realising.

"Did you sleep okay last night?" Malfoy suddenly asked as he continued to stare straight into her soul.

She had to turn away, having little understanding as to why he questioned her about it. Her pulse raced.

"Yeah. With some help," Hermione searched Malfoy's gaze again, "I suppose... you use it too?"

Malfoy, still facing Hermione, answered he did, in fact, use sleeping draught.

"Sooner or later, you won't need it," Malfoy deemed as he inched closer, hands still burrowed in his pockets.

Quite a peculiar thing to say to her.

In seconds, the distance between them closed entirely and Hermione could feel a strange warmth emit from his body. He was bold and she couldn't help but feel intimidated by this strange and sudden shift in their progress in becoming acquaintances. But what scared her the most was the fact that she didn't move away from him in repulsion.

Malfoy leaned down toward her, his nose merely centimetres away from hers. She closed her eyes as he progressed and waited for whatever was to happen to happen already.

"Sweet dreams, Granger," Malfoy quietly whispered in her ear before he unknowingly withdrew himself away from her.

The warmth quickly faded as she slowly opened her eyes to see he was already gone.

She could feel her heart pound strongly within her chest, her hands tremble and knees quiver. Her mind reeled with the image of his steel grey eyes embedded into her brain. What on earth just happened?

Not wanting to head back so soon in fear of catching up with the Slytherin, Hermione decided to stay held up in the astronomy tower. She fell to her knees and stared aimlessly into the night sky searching within the stars for any possible answers of what had transpired. Seeing none, she pondered what the future held for her instead.

Would it be favourable or bleak?

She wondered.

* * *

 _AN: Theodore Nott in my story/opinion wears black-rimmed glasses and built to play Quidditch, a major contrast from the books._


	9. Chapter Nine

Hermione watched as the Gryffindor Quidditch team practised rigorously above the pitch.

Ginny was drilling her new team hard, shouting out manoeuvres and pointing out mistakes made by the members. Her fiery disposition matched her hair as she flew fast pass the stands, showing off her expert play.

She wasn't going to go easy on her players.

Hermione reminisced the time when Harry was captain, who had also laboriously drilled his own team. It was a joy seeing Ginny take over and work her new team just as well, even better than Harry Potter himself, giving her high hopes for Gryffindor.

As they continued with practice, Hermione noticed a cluster of green waltz right onto the pitch from the ground. She stood straight up for a better view and was alarmed to see the Slytherin team in full gear strut to the middle of the field. She could see Nott at the front of the group patiently stand there and watch the Gryffindor team fly about all the while Malfoy lingered in the back.

Ginny finally took notice of the group and halted play to approach them.

Hermione could see Ginny hop swiftly off her broom to confront Nott directly with her team not too far behind her. She couldn't hear what the two captains were saying but she could tell by the look on Ginny's red face that whatever was on the parchment paper Nott had just given her to read was not pleasant.

As Hermione tried to quickly make it out of the stands and onto the Quidditch grounds to find out what was going on, she could see Ginny order her players to follow her off of the field, which confounded her. Why did Slytherin take over when Gryffindor had already scheduled for this time slot? What exactly did Nott say to Ginny to convince her off of the pitch?

Hermione finally made her way to the Gryffindor locker rooms just as they were about to enter.

"Ginny! What happened out there?" Hermione called out.

The younger girl stopped in her tracks but motioned her members to head on into the showers. She turned to relay what went down to Hermione.

"They get to use the pitch now. Nott showed me the authorisation," Ginny disconcertingly said.

"Wait, what? But your team was scheduled for the entire day, how could they—"

"He took it up with _both_ our head of houses. Since we've been practising nearly every day, they agreed that we've overdone our stay and should rest for now," Ginny said as Hermione followed her right up to the locker room doors, "that prick just showed me their signed approval."

"They could have at least waited until your practice was over," Hermione voiced.

"Arseholes aren't as polite," Ginny said sighing before entering the locker room.

Left alone, Hermione decided to see how the Slytherin team held up.

She made her way back into the stands and scooted her way past many girls who suddenly appeared to watch the Slytherin team practice.

When she got back to her spot, far from the boisterous girls, she searched the field for a certain pale blonde.

Instead, she made contact with a smug looking Nott waving at her. The admirable response from the girls grew louder as he came flying toward the stands. Though unfortunately for them, Nott practically ignored their calls and approached Hermione.

"Come to see me too, Granger?" Nott suddenly called out to her.

Hermione derisively laughed. The group of girls was audibly imploring him for his attention which she couldn't help but roll her eyes at.

"Hm? You weren't laughing much when we were together the other night," Nott loudly proclaimed.

From the corner of her eyes, she could see the girls stare daggers her way, the noise quieting down.

"Must have fallen for my charm. The only possible reason why you're still here, no?" Nott asked before he lifted his finger and lightly flicked the bottom of her chin.

She didn't respond out of fear that the girls near her would take it out of context but figured it was already too late. Instead, she remained quiet and watched as he winked at her before flying off.

Her gaze followed him until she found Malfoy's cold stare.

He didn't look in any particular mood but stern. She shivered from the small cool breeze that suddenly materialised and continued to stare back until he broke contact with her and started practice.

For nearly an hour, the Slytherin team practised with no breaks.

Hermione could see why Ginny was so high-strung about Nott and walked away from the pitch. She didn't need to be there any longer than she had to. She could clearly see what they were up against.

* * *

At dinner, Hermione ate uncomfortably as she received many glowers from the girls at the Slytherin table. She had an idea on why but didn't understand how she was to blame. Nott talked to her of his own accord, she wanted nothing to do with him. But of course, everyone was out to get her, there was no way around it as she was famously the "brightest witch of her age".

Provocation apparently came along with the title.

Nevertheless, she tried to ignore the itchy feeling and shake off their intense glares.

"They're just jealous that one of their Slytherin boys took an interest in you," Ginny said as she stared back at some girls in her grade.

Intimidated by the headstrong Gryffindor, the girls notably looked away. Hermione was happy some of the staring stopped.

"They shouldn't have to worry. I have no interest."

"Well, clearly you couldn't say the same for him," Ginny informed, "he's practically ogling you right now!"

Hermione didn't have to be told twice to see that Nott was eyeing her. She felt dirty as he stared at her with an arm around another girl. The arrogance that radiated off of him made her yearn for a shower.

"Too bad he's Slytherin, he's not hard on the eyes," Ginny said as she took a huge bite of her pasta.

"Is it the glasses?" Hermione teased which resulted in Ginny choking on her food.

Hermione giggled at the silly girl but soon stopped herself. What Ginny said was a bit unsettling. No wonder those Slytherin girls felt encroached with Hermione. The mentality that was widespread among the other students about them wasn't all congenial.

She definitely knew Nott knew that. That was why their interactions with one another grew increasingly questionable.

"It's a shame really, for someone who looks like that be a complete ass," Ginny said.

"That's the nicest thing I've ever heard you say about anyone," Hermione joked, "especially for a _rival_ Quidditch captain."

The redhead continued to eat her dinner despite Hermione's teasing. Ginny eventually changed the topic and had asked the older girl whether or not she was busy over the weekend to which Hermione replied that she was. Ginny didn't give up however and had managed to convince Hermione to spend some good quality time with her to relieve more stress.

As always, Hermione thought it wasn't a bad idea and had found herself a date to Hogsmeade for the following weekend.

After dinner, Hermione made her way to the library for a quick little study session before curfew kicked in. She sauntered to the back of the library to what shouldn't have been a surprise was Draco Malfoy sitting in her seat.

The wizard was too absorbed in his own work to have noticed Hermione stand there, although, knowing him, he may have already presumed her presence.

"I'll get out of your way," Malfoy expectantly said as he dropped his quill and started to roll up his parchment paper. He didn't look up at her when he stood which made her wonder how he even knew she was there, to begin with.

"Er-no. Stay, I was just heading back to my dorm anyway," Hermione insisted.

Malfoy finally raised his head and watched as she turned away from him.

"This is your spot, isn't it? You can still sit here, there's plenty of space," Malfoy called to her before she could leave out of sight, "I don't mind."

Hermione turned to him and decided it wouldn't hurt to try. They were on "okay" terms now so sitting at the same table shouldn't be much of a problem.

Hermione nodded her head in silence and timidly made her way over to the seat diagonal from Malfoy. He watched her sit before unrolling his parchment paper to continue on with whatever homework he had and she relaxed.

She placed an enormous book of ancient runes she had charmed to float onto the table as quietly as possible and opened it.

Between reading and sneaking glances at Malfoy, she grew increasingly unfocused with him only being a few feet away. She felt jittery and decided one final peek at the Slytherin wouldn't hurt her curiosity and found herself staring straight into his eyes.

The intrigue in those eyes and sense of composure as his chin rested in his palm startled her and made her fluster. It was as if he had been staring at her for some time now and she couldn't help but feel a weird tingling sensation travel through her veins.

Hermione had to tear her eyes away from him to continue her pleasure reading but it was of no use. Just as she was about to give up and address the slight issue at hand, Madam Pince, the librarian, announced the library would soon close. This was Hermione's chance to escape Malfoy's captive hold over her.

But before she could pack away her things, Malfoy spoke.

"How about some fun Granger?"

"Sorry?" Hermione's heart raced when he asked even though she sported a serious facade.

"Seeing you read in your spare time is quite depressing," Malfoy chimed.

Hermione knew what he meant but didn't know why he chose to pester her about it.

"Reading _is_ fun," she refuted, "I wouldn't think you'd understand."

She found herself smiling back as his face lit up in amusement. She didn't know why, but she wasn't deterred by his company. She quite enjoyed the small banter.

"As expected from you, nonetheless," Malfoy replied, "so how about we go and explore your more daring side. I know you got it in you."

A second announcement to exit the library echoed throughout the shelves.

"What do you suppose we do then, Malfoy?"

"Stay for awhile and find out," Malfoy clued in as the corners of his lips rose.

Madam Pince announced her final warning to all the students left behind in the library, making her rounds to check for any would be stragglers. Hermione quickly charmed her book back to its proper place on the shelves in response while Malfoy uttered some charms and incantations with his wand. She watched curiously as he did so until he finished.

"So your plan is to stay in the library after hours?" Hermione watched as he stood up from his seat, "please, it's not something I haven't done before."

"Good, saves me the trouble of convincing you then."

When Madam Pince made her way to where they were situated, she clearly overlooked their presence and left. Hermione was impressed by Malfoy's concealment charms and had no qualms about his ruse as she had in the past successfully stayed behind in the library.

When the lights had turned off and the huge doors by the entrance closed behind Madam Pince, did the two make their way to the front.

"You know, as prefects, we really shouldn't be doing this," Hermione casually advised.

"We shouldn't," Malfoy said as he walked with his hands in his pockets, "but we are."

He walked over to the front desk and made his way around to where Madam Pince usually sat. Immediately, he searched for something underneath her desk that peaked Hermione's curiosity. It was answered when he pulled out an enormous bottle of firewhisky and an old-fashioned glass cup. Malfoy raised the bottle to eye level to measure the amount of liquor left which happened to be nearly full.

"Still new," Malfoy commented before opening the bottle, "want some?"

Hermione was appalled that he'd ask her to drink alcohol on school grounds, especially when it didn't belong to him. She quickly rushed over to the desk to try and stop the wizard.

"Malfoy! You shouldn't do that," Hermione urged, "drinking while on school grounds with liquor that doesn't belong to you?"

"No one has to know," Malfoy retorted as he poured a good amount into the glass, "besides, you agreed to this. Lighten up a bit."

Hermione tried to find it within herself to reprimand Malfoy about all the rules he decided to break tonight but didn't have the courage to do so. Instead, she took a deep breath and let fate decide what to do as she had enough of being little miss goody-two-shoes.

When Malfoy saw that she gave into his influence, he drank some of the firewhisky he had poured for himself clean before pouring some more for Hermione. She shamefully walked up to him and took the glass from his outstretched hand.

"Cheers," Malfoy spout before Hermione brought the glass to her lips and drank.

Hours later, into the dead of night, Hermione found herself humming to a tune her mother used to sing to her when she was little. She was perched on top of one of the library tables and swung her feet over the edge as she hummed, intoxicated. Malfoy sat in the chair right beside her and watched in amusement as she did so quietly to herself. Both of their robes were hanging on another chair and their ties loosely dangled around their necks.

"You're pretty lightweight, " Malfoy teased, leaning back in his chair, appearing almost sober.

"Is it hot in here or is it just me?" Hermione remarked before trying to open her sleeve button.

She stopped herself though and stared lifelessly at her wrist and began to seriously wonder about something pertaining to Malfoy specifically.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Hermione slowly leaned forward.

Interested, Malfoy sat up and leaned toward her, willing to hear what she had in mind.

"Sure, what is it?"

Hermione had trouble bringing about the question and stared at him with as much sobriety as she could muster.

"What did you want to ask?" Malfoy repeated.

"I was just curious... About, well, you know..." Hermione tugged on her sleeve for reference.

Malfoy didn't immediately answer her to which she felt embarrassed for bringing up the past.

"I'm sorry, that was insensitive of me."

"Want to see?" Malfoy promptly offered as he got up from his chair.

He stood and stared down at the girl who shrunk in her spot from the sudden height difference. He was practically towering over her as she sat on the table, leaning back to give herself some space between them. But the front of his legs brushed against her open knees which made her quiver from the contact. Her body responded in a highly inappropriate way and she blamed it on the alcohol.

Without warning, he laid the back of his left hand right onto her thigh, stiffening his limb to present his forearm. He didn't say a word but had urged her to unbutton his sleeve with his eyes.

Compelled to see what was beneath, she reached for his wrist with both her hands.

Slowly did Hermione undo his cuff and released his sleeve of its hold around his arm. She was surprised she was able to do so with ease and continued. Eventually, she managed to fold his sleeve up his arm to reveal what she had anticipated and froze.

Her eyes widened at the sight of a grim serpent protrude from the mouth of a skull. It was stagnant and in the dim light, faded, but still apparent.

Memories of what the symbol produced sent a cold shock down her spine that caused her to grab at Malfoy's wrist subconsciously in search of warmth. She garnered no response from the boy which allowed her to continue with her examination.

Curious to how the mark felt against her fingertips, she lightly stroked the image with her forefinger. The small act caused Malfoy to sharply inhale and look away from Hermione for a quick second before she could retract her hand in fear that she had hurt him.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean—"

"No, it's fine," Malfoy assured her.

He turned her way again and leaned further toward Hermione, his hair nearly touching her forehead. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, her pupils dilated and every hair on her body stood on end. Malfoy's steel grey eyes pierced through her like none before him that she almost had the impossible urge to lunge at him.

But she didn't, not when he gingerly reached for her left arm.

"May I?"

Hermione nodded without breaking eye contact with him until he single-handedly unbuttoned her left shirt sleeve and rolled it up.

She watched as his long finger smoothly ran up her forearm to touch the faded letters that continued to scar her. She gasped from the slight contact.

"You never healed it," Malfoy quietly spoke.

"I couldn't," Hermione breathed, "I can't."

"I'm sorry..."

They were so close Hermione had to close her eyes to block him from getting into her head. She didn't want a mental image of a sincere-looking Malfoy replaying over and over again. It just wasn't right. She, however, embraced his opulent scent and the feeling of his proximity to her. The only thing keeping them apart was her palm against his chest that created some distance from him.

"Me too," Hermione softly replied.

Malfoy lifted his head away to look directly at her face.

"Yours wasn't voluntary."

She carefully opened her eyes and found herself staring at his chest, unable to look at him.

"No, but we _both_ had no choice," said a weary Hermione.

And they both fell silent.

Finally, Malfoy decided it was about time they head in for the night and moved away from Hermione as he covered up his sleeve. The warmth disappeared from her hand and knees. She practically had to catch herself from falling forward off the table from the sudden departure.

Malfoy noticed and in a better mood, chuckled slightly.

"What?" Hermione questioned, confused.

"You reek of firewhisky," Malfoy replied before returning her school robe. She took it and the hand he offered to help her off the table.

Still slightly tipsy, she wavered about until Malfoy had to hold her steady.

"I'll walk you back to your dorm," Malfoy offered as she tried to put on her robe.

She struggled but managed and agreed to be led back, foolishly placing all of her firm trust in him.

When Hermione was good to go and Malfoy had charmed the bottle and glass back to its original place behind the desk, Malfoy grabbed Hermione's arm and hung it over his shoulder, his hand touching her side.

The contact struck nerves and Hermione didn't think her heart could take it. She tried to push out the thought of his hand grabbing her hip and moved along beside him as they exited the library.

The two discreetly walked all the way back to the Gryffindor tower with surprising ease. Fortunately for them, there were no ghosts wandering about or teachers to scold them. But when they had finally reached the front entrance and came upon the Fat Lady, Hermione had realised how late it was as the portrait was very cross.

"Have you no decency? Waking me up from my beauty sleep," the Fat Lady harshly whispered as she didn't want to disturb nearby portraits, "You're not even a member of the House of Gryffindor, why are you here?" staring particularly at Malfoy.

"Our sincere apologies, but we're prefects. We had some trouble with some students caught out late," Malfoy answered as Hermione smiled sheepishly, "I was just escorting my partner back to her dorm from a nasty fight."

"And you decided to return to your beds at _three_ in the morning?" The Fat Lady clearly didn't buy his excuse.

"Nux Myristica," Hermione whimsically blurted out, unable to control herself.

"Gesundheit," Malfoy playfully replied back.

Hermione giggled.

Hearing Hermione say the correct password made the Fat Lady's eyes roll and she reluctantly opened the door.

"Are you going to be all right by yourself?" Malfoy asked as he helped Hermione straighten out from slouching. His hands briefly held both of her hips to hold her steady which sent more sparks running down her spine.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Hermione quickly reassured him and drew herself away from his hold.

She started to make her way through the entrance but stopped halfway.

"What's wrong?" Malfoy asked as he noticed she stilled.

Hermione turned around and walked straight back to Malfoy. When she reached him, she tiptoed and delicately planted a kiss on his cheek to his utter disbelief.

"Thank you," she whispered last before heading into the common room and disappearing into the dorm.

The entrance door closed on him as he stood there, staring back at the girl he had the pleasure of being with for the night all the while the Fat Lady angrily stared straight back at him.

* * *

 _AN: The mudblood scar on Hermione's arm is from the movies and not the books but I decided to add it into my story._

 _Gesundheit - used to wish good health to a person who has just sneezed._


	10. Chapter Ten

Hermione woke up hungover and had to lie in bed for awhile after her alarm had gone off. She desperately tried to clear her aching head but nothing worked.

"You all right there?" Ginny asked as she came by and sat next to Hermione's form.

The girl was in the middle of changing as she pulled on her knee high uniform socks.

"No, I've got a massive headache," Hermione voiced as she placed the back of her palm against her forehead, "can you get me some water?"

"Sure."

Ginny procured a cup on top of Hermione's nightstand with her wand and cast the agumenti spell.

Once her cup filled, Ginny handed it over to a parched Hermione. The witch downed all the water in giant gulps and fell right back into the comfort of her pillows and blanket once finished. She desperately wanted to sleep in.

Ginny watched Hermione in amusement and gave her an all-knowing look that irritated her.

"What?"

The redhead only smiled at her and got up off her bed.

"Nothing," Ginny innocently said, "but when the hangover subsides, come down and eat breakfast with me. Then maybe we could talk about what happened last night?"

And before Hermione could respond, Ginny was already out of the room.

Hermione suddenly remembered everything that had happened the night before. She recalled the details, from every scent to every touch to the small kiss... Her cheeks started to burn with the thought of Malfoy and all she wanted to do was stay cooped up in bed and forget it all happened.

Why did Ginny have to remind her so much of Ron sometimes?

The guilt was too much for her. She wanted to disappear and hide under the warmth of her blanket, but even that was too much for her as last night's dinner crept its way up her stomach.

Hermione never ran so fast for the loo in her life.

* * *

For two days straight, Hermione went to her classes as usual and not once had spoken with Malfoy since the incident. In fact, she hadn't seen him during lunch or dinner time and it made her wonder if he was intentionally ignoring her.

Hermione couldn't stop ruminating over whether that was the case and felt sick because of it. Having even the slightest of feelings for someone who was not her boyfriend was wrong in every sense of the word, _especially_ when it was for someone she had found repugnant for years until now. It was sinfully dishonest. No matter what she did, however, she couldn't stop her thoughts from wandering to him.

Friday came and again Hermione hadn't seen Malfoy at breakfast. She didn't have to wait too long though when it came time for their shared double potions class, their talented group back together again.

As her team strategically worked, Hermione couldn't help but sneak some glances at Malfoy, who, not once, turned her way. Their sudden disconnect itched at Hermione and bothered her to no end, she had to physically stop herself from glaring at him and looked the other way.

Then did she notice the small, colourful flowers in nearly all of her female classmates' hair. Hermione paused from her work to absorb the unusual sight before her.

"I'm surprised you're not wearing it that way," Zabini abruptly commented as he caught his partner staring at a group of girls sporting the trend, "after all, you did start it."

Hermione immediately returned to cutting her ingredients the moment Zabini spoke, debating on whether or not to retort. However, once she decided to respond to his allegation, a loud explosion bellowed throughout the entire classroom, followed by a light grey mist startling everyone.

The noise alarmed Hermione so bad, she accidentally cut herself with her own knife while in the middle of chopping her ingredients.

As Professor Slughorn scurried to the group whose cauldron exploded and all the other students busied themselves to see what happened, Ginny noticed Hermione's bloody finger.

"Hermione, are you all right?" Ginny asked highly concerned for the witch.

She could see the worried expressions on both Ginny and Malfoy's faces as they stared at her hand which prevented her from seeking aid. Malfoy's stare, in particular, was a major distraction.

"It should be fine once cleaned," Zabini suddenly interposed as he reached over to Hermione and grabbed her hand.

In a matter of seconds, Zabini took Hermione's finger, brought it to his lips and gently sucked away the blood. Ginny's jaw dropped while Malfoy looked on with wide eyes. Hermione froze and just watched as Zabini charmed a band-aid over the tip of her finger once he was finished healing her wound.

"The band-aid's a precaution for infection," Zabini stated, deadpan, "you should be careful next time or the ingredients could get contaminated."

Hermione's cheeks grew pinker by the moment but nodded in response.

"Thank you..." Hermione managed to say before Zabini returned to his work.

"Don't mention it," he assured, "just recut fresh ingredients so we could finish this already."

The Slytherin was more interested in finishing the day's potion assignment than what was going on around him. With Slughorn loudly trying to calm a group down for their potion mishap and his own teammates staring at him in absolute bewilderment, Hermione couldn't help but smile slightly at how impartial he was to everything.

Hermione turned Ginny's way for a reaction and caught the young girl squint suspiciously at Zabini all while Malfoy was already in his own realm, stirring his cauldron.

She unconsciously sighed and quietly continued on with her work until the end of the period.

By evening, Hermione opted to skip dinner and headed straight for the library once she saw that Malfoy was yet again not in the dining hall. She ignored Madam Pince's wary expression as she walked past the front desk and headed straight for the spot she first came into contact with the boy. When she got there, again he was nowhere in sight.

Why did she even bother with him? He clearly had no more interest in her. It was pointless to have reconciled with Malfoy in the first place.

Disappointed, she decided to head back to the dining hall. As she swiftly turned on the spot, she unknowingly collided into someone who nearly knocked her backwards. Luckily that someone instinctively grabbed a hold of her before she could hit the floor.

Two sturdy hands held Hermione's arms steady and helped her balance back onto her own two feet. Her heart pounded in her chest seeing the face she had the pleasure of growing accustom to stare back at her.

"Malfoy," Hermione heedlessly whispered.

"Granger," he countered, "ever consider your surroundings?"

His small smile swayed Hermione ever so slightly she almost forgot she was looking at _Malfoy_. She mentally slapped herself out of it and pushed away from his alluring hold.

This was her chance to address him about the other night but she couldn't for the life of her find words to express herself. Malfoy, mistakenly taking her silence as not wanting to speak to him anymore, ran his fingers through his already mussed hair and started to walk away.

"I'll be on my way..."

"Wait. Was it something that I did?" Hermione called out to him the moment he turned his back to her, "the reason why you're not talking to me?"

He stopped and slowly turned to face her again. She could see uncertainty colour his eyes when he turned to her. It looked as if he was searching for the right words to say himself but when it came time to answer her, changed his initial thought.

"How's your finger?"

Hermione ignored his obvious redirect and silently waited for him to respond to her first.

When he didn't answer, Hermione broke their contact and held onto her bandaged finger, saddened.

"It's fine," she said.

Of course, he wouldn't answer her.

Suddenly, with no warning, Malfoy strode over to Hermione in a matter of seconds, closing the distance between the two.

She found herself backed up to the table's edge as he pressed himself against her, causing her to audibly gasp from the contact. A tingling sensation along with the goosebumps prickling her skin, coursed down her spine and legs as he continued to press himself against her. Her knees buckled and were practically giving in.

"What are you—"

His eyes strongly bore into hers and implored her silent.

For a while, Hermione couldn't speak but had impulsively reached for him. She cradled her hand against his cold cheek and searched his eyes for clarification. What was this sudden need? He turned his head toward her hand in response, lips notably touching her palm, and closed his eyes, relaxed.

"I'm relieved," Malfoy said into her hand before he moved away from her completely. He gave her no time to comprehend the situation and left before she could call out to him in her obvious state of bewilderment.

Hermione slumped down onto the floor, dumbfounded with a heart beating so erratically it could rip from her chest any second now.

What in the name of Merlin was he doing to her?

* * *

The weekend finally arrived which meant the highly anticipated date with Ginny at Hogsmeade came. The younger witch, eager to leave the castle, decided to wake Hermione early for the occasion.

"Ginny... it's only eight..." Hermione grumbled as she laid in her bed, trying to block the light streaming through the window out of her eyes.

"Oh come on, you're not the least bit excited for today?"

Hermione didn't respond as she dozed a little off to sleep, her forearm still covering her eyes.

"Hermione!"

"I'm awake..." she half-lied but finally sat up so the girl would stop pestering her.

Her hair was a nest of tangles and her clothes were in complete disarray as she sat lazily by the edge of her bed. Once she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, she got a clear image of the girl and was stunned.

Ginny was wearing a mini pleated skirt and a cream turtleneck jumper that suited her so well, Hermione herself fell in love. The girl was beyond gorgeous as her long wavy hair accentuated her fall look. So pretty, in fact, she began to feel a little self-conscious the longer she stared at the girl slouching in bed.

"Wow, Ginny you look amazing," Hermione complimented, "but what's the occasion? We're only going out for butterbeer."

Ginny's perfect brow rose as she stared at Hermione's pitiful state.

"Have you forgotten what today was?" Ginny asked as she started to walk over to her bed filled with clothes, makeup, and accessories. Instead of cleaning up, she reached for a nicely wrapped gift at the foot of her bed.

Hermione finally remembered why today was so special.

"Happy Birthday Hermione!" Ginny shouted as she brought the gift over to her.

Hermione felt a touch of warmth in her chest and smiled brightly at the girl. She couldn't believe she forgot her own birthday with all that has happened. For Ginny to remember meant a lot to her and she couldn't have asked for anything better.

"You shouldn't have," Hermione said as she eyed the nicely wrapped present given to her.

"What kind of friend would I be?" Ginny responded before urging her to open the huge box.

Hermione delicately unwrapped it and opened the box's lid to reveal three separate items. She managed to pull out Ginny's gift and was yet again stunned.

Ginny had given her a tastefully deep orange coloured baby doll dress that she wanted Hermione to wear for the rest of the day. In her own words, celebrations called for dressing fancy and looking your absolute best and so Hermione aimed to do just that.

Before she went to get herself ready, Hermione took out the remaining two items from the box that Ginny said was given to her by Luna and Neville. She received a beautifully painted canvas of Hogwarts and a small pot of roses that were absolutely adorable. She had no trouble guessing which item came from who.

"I love it all, but they really didn't have to."

"'Hermione! It's your birthday, why wouldn't they get you a present? Friends give each other things to show how much they care about them, so you should just appreciate the effort put into those gifts," Ginny loudly proclaimed, "but now's not the time."

Ginny pushed the older witch in the direction of the lavatory as there was no time to waste with more surprises ahead. That word alone had Hermione dashing for the washroom as she couldn't wait for what was in store for her.

The moment Hermione stepped back into the dorm room, clean and fresh for the day, Ginny couldn't help but squeal with delight at the sight of her.

"Oh Hermione, you look amazing!" Ginny exclaimed as she pulled Hermione in front of their shared floor mirror.

An hour or so later, the younger witch finished Hermione's makeup and managed to tame her curls. Ginny exclaimed Hermione looked even prettier than herself to which Hermione kept denying but repeatedly thanked the girl for all she had done.

"No time for that now," Ginny said as she charmed her things to clean itself up, "let's go!"

And they were off.

The entire way to Hogsmeade consisted of stares and chatter as the two paced themselves. Hermione would slow down from time to time, timid with the way she looked. Ginny, on the other hand, thought it silly and held tightly onto Hermione's hand, confidently leading her through the walkway toward the Three Broomsticks. She wanted everyone to know that the brightest witch of their age could carry herself stunningly. The girl succeeded when some boys stopped to compliment her.

As the two made their way inside the old tavern, Ginny led her to the back. She paused seemingly to search for someone and had found them once they made it to the far end. The girl instantly dropped Hermione's hand and scurried to a boy waiting by the door leading upstairs.

What shocked Hermione was the fact that Ginny practically threw herself at a boy whom she did not recognize. He wore a blue jumper and had dirty blonde hair. She assumed he was from Ravenclaw yet she couldn't place a name to the face.

Once the redhead finally calmed down, she motioned Hermione to them. As confounded as she was, she approached and faintly started to introduce herself.

"Hello, I'm Hermione—"

"Jean Granger. I know. It's great to see you again," said the strange looking boy with an all too familiar voice.

Hermione could recognise that sound anywhere and immediately threw her arms around the boy's neck to embrace him.

"HARRY!" Hermione squealed.

Harry James Potter, the most courageous and now most revered boy she and the whole wizarding world has ever known, stood before her.

Luckily for them, the tavern was filled with chatter and no one could hear her sudden outburst. Embracing him for the first time since his departure was quite overwhelming that she began to tear up, burying her face deep into the crevice of his neck. Harry wouldn't let go of Hermione until she felt she could stare into his brilliant green eyes.

"You're here," Hermione breathed as she clasped the sides of his face with both her hands, trying to get a good look at the altered boy who lived.

"I wouldn't miss your birthday for anything," Harry cheerfully said as she ran her fingers through his blonde hair.

"Look at you. I could barely recognise you," Hermione commented.

"How about we talk more in detail upstairs?" Ginny interjected as she nodded toward a group of some people eyeing Hermione.

With that, the three made their way upstairs into a room Harry had rented out. The moment they sat around the small coffee table by the chimney, Harry had transfigured his face and hair back to its regular trademarked look, complete with the lightning bolt scar on his forehead.

"What are you doing here?" Hermione immediately asked, still in shock of seeing her best friend again.

"I've come to see you of course," Harry replied until he saw Hermione's brow arched, "well, I was actually stationed here for the weekend for basic training."

Harry reached out and grabbed Hermione's hand from across the table. He gave her an assuring squeeze and one of the softest smiles she'd ever seen come from him.

"Happy Birthday Hermione," voiced Harry with affection.

And the two began to talk.

As the two caught up with one another, a knock on the door firmly interrupted their conversation. Ginny got up from beside Harry to answer it and opened the door for a waiter. The man had brought four pints of butter beers and placed them all in the middle of the coffee table along with a small present addressed to Hermione.

She stared at the tiny box and at the drinks suspiciously. Putting two in two together, she glanced up at Harry and Ginny before turning to the smiling waiter. He had brunette hair but his freckles and crystal blue eyes were a dead giveaway and she immediately jumped to her feet.

Hermione covered her mouth with both hands, speechless and teary-eyed once more.

"Happy Birthday Hermione," said Ron as he transfigured his hair back to its notable red colour.

Ronald Bilius Weasley, the boy who she butted heads with in all her years but still had managed to capture her heart. Nothing could make her more ecstatic than seeing him.

"But... he said you couldn't make it..." Hermione muttered into her hands referring to Harry.

Ron slowly approached her with open arms and embraced her. She was still in shock as he wrapped his long arms around her smaller form but caved in at the utter warmth of his chest. She didn't realise how much she really missed the two until they were standing right before her very own eyes.

Her boys were back and the trio was finally together again. It meant more to her than any present.

"I missed you," Ron said as he placed his chin atop the crown of her head.

Hermione couldn't gather the energy to respond right away and only snuggled into his chest some more. But after a while, she finally pulled away to look at her tall ginger boy.

"I missed you too."

"Well, now that you're all reacquainted, shall we drink?" Ginny interrupted as she picked up a pint and raised it into the air, "a toast? For your endearing friendship."

Harry grabbed one for himself and Ron, while Ron gave Hermione her own pint along with her small gift before they toasted altogether.

"For your brilliant mind," Harry voiced.

"And for everything you've done for us," followed Ron.

"Happy Birthday Hermione!" All three sounded in unison before all four chugged their butter beers merrily.

This was honestly one of the greatest birthdays she's ever had. She couldn't have been more grateful and began to feel more like herself again.

Oh, how she missed it dearly.


	11. Chapter Eleven

_AN: Warning - Hermione/Ron intensive._

* * *

Hermione shivered slightly next to Ron as they gazed ahead at the Shrieking Shack together. Ron noticed and took off his robe and wrapped it around her shoulders for her to use.

"Thank you," Hermione quietly said as she snuggled into it.

Back at the inn, Hermione had already opened her presents from both Harry and Ron. Harry's gift to her was a book entitled _The True History of the Opal Fire_ which delighted her. He had picked it up on one of his assisting raids at a Death Eater's home and immediately thought of Hermione. She was the only person he knew would be intrigued to read it and the only person brilliant enough to decipher any possible hidden messages within the book if there were any. All in all, it was a present both found valuable.

Alternatively, Ron's gift to Hermione was a small box displayed on the tray brought in with the butterbeer. It was a newly designed S.P.E.W. pin he thought would help kick-start her organisation and attract students to join for the new school year. It meant a lot to Hermione that Ron still cared about her fighting for the rights of elves. After all, it was what ultimately brought them together. The pin was sort of like a small memento for the two, a reminder of how their relationship had blossomed.

"You look beautiful, by the way," Ron voiced.

Hermione blushed from the compliment and thanked him while she snuggled more into the robe.

"Ginny made sure I dressed _appropriately_ for my birthday," Hermione said without taking her eyes off of the shabby rooftop of the Shrieking Shack, "every inch of me is glamorised for this very occasion."

"Well you'll have to remind me to thank her for that," Ron blithely said as he turned her way rubbing his hands together from the obvious cold. He gave her his lopsided smile that she adored and pushed against his arm in response.

"Wanna go in?" Ron suddenly asked as Hermione started to seep back into staring aimlessly at the building.

She didn't immediately answer him as memories of the place flooded into her head. There were joyful ones of the two standing where they stood years before but many more unpleasant ones that had happened inside the shack that made her hesitate.

"It's fine if you don't want to. I-I'd understand—"

"No. Let's go in," Hermione curiously said as she stared the building down one last time before finally heading for a way inside.

For a while, Hermione and Ron explored the same empty rooms of the two floored shack before meeting in a familiar room with a magnificent, yet dusty, four-poster bed inside. Ron spelled the dust clean off of the bed before sitting down on its squeaky mattress and patted a spot next to him for Hermione to sit.

Instead, her eyes wandered to some open floorboards across the room feeling anxious.

"What's wrong?" Ron asked seeing her fidget where she stood.

"I don't know what I was expecting coming in here," Hermione replied, eyes still unfocused.

"Hey, we could leave if you want. We don't have to stay."

Ron got up and strode over to Hermione to comfort her. Something was clearly bothering her but he wasn't sure what exactly. He resorted to what he thought would help and reached out to hold her firmly in his arms.

At first, Hermione was completely caught off guard by the action. She was too rapt in her own world and wasn't giving Ron much thought since entering the shack. But as he towered over her form, holding her in hopes to calm her state of upset, she relaxed a bit.

A sweeping silence spread allowing her to think about recent events that did not run well with her. Malfoy's stupid face kept popping up in her head and she began to feel more guilty in Ron's embrace.

"Ron, there's something I need to tell you," Hermione abruptly said as she pulled away from his chest in search of a reaction.

His astounded look grew worrisome as she relayed what she wanted to say, "It's about Malfoy."

His surprise slowly turned into a scowl at hearing his name.

"Has he been bothering you?" Ron's voice grew deep almost like a snarl, clearly concerned.

"No, no it's not that. He's actually been quite civil these days," Hermione said attempting to calm him down, "... more so with me."

"What? He's trying to _talk_ to you?" Ron asked incredulously and before Hermione could respond he continued, "what's that snake up to now?"

The sound of cracking knuckles echoed in the room and her eyes immediately darted to his balled up fist by his side. With both her hands, Hermione reached for it and gently rubbed it for a calming effect.

"He's harmless, Ron. He's only trying to apologise for what he's done," Hermione tried explaining, "I didn't tell you in my letters because I knew you'd get like this."

"That sodding git has no right talking to you," Ron angrily blurted out, walking himself over to a window to cool down, "and you kept it from me? How long has this been going on?"

She didn't want to answer but knew it was best to keep honest.

"He was given his prefect badge back and we have potions together," Hermione made sure to include, "ever since the start of the school year I suppose."

Ron couldn't believe what he was hearing but remained more level headed than she anticipated.

"Think McGonagall's gone barmy," he practically cursed under his breath.

"Ronald!" Hermione won't let him insult the Headmistress when she was clearly not to blame, "could you for once consider that people _do_ change, even those who you haven't always seen eye to eye with?"

Usually, by this point, Ron would have retaliated back but he didn't. He just stood his ground by the window and watched as Hermione's own cheeks turn pink from reprimanding him. Her perfectly smoothed curls seemed to have increased in volume from her small outburst and her eyes lit fiercely with fire. Ron slowly walked over to Hermione and cautiously brought his hand up to cradle her cheek.

"You're a really good person Hermione," Ron quietly said which notably took her back, "I'm sorry I'm overreacting. I just—can't forgive him for what he's done and said to you, to _us_."

Hermione now couldn't believe what Ron was saying. He had matured far more than she had expected and was actually relieved.

"I know, I couldn't believe it at first myself. But you have to give him some credit, it takes a great deal of courage to openly admit that what he did was wrong," Hermione expressed.

"Malfoy was the last person I'd expect who'd want to change," Ron replied, "but I guess I have to take your word for it. After all, you're always right."

His words didn't settle well with her and she looked away.

"I'm sorry Hermione. It's your birthday and I'm acting like a childish prat. Just promise me, if anything happens regarding Malfoy, _anything,_ you tell me, yeah?"

Hermione's eyes focused on his and with a heavy heart, blindly spoke, "Okay."

Ron reached for her again and kissed her forehead before suggesting they leave the frigid shack.

"You know, I'm staying at the Three Broomsticks for the entire weekend," Ron remarked with his arm around her shoulders, making their way to the exit.

"What are you suggesting?" Hermione genuinely asked in curiosity as she was beginning to process what he was saying.

"Maybe... you could stay for the night?" Ron sheepishly asked.

"You know I can't do that, for Merlin's sake Ron, I'm a prefect. If caught, I'll get a month's worth of detention, my visitation rights to Hogsmeade removed and my prefect status revoked," Hermione exclaimed as they left out the back door of the shack.

"Ginny's agreed to do it! Heck, she planned this entire weekend for this _very_ occasion," Ron reasoned.

"She did not," Hermione retorted but seeing Ron's eyebrows raise implying that she did, in fact, had agreed, Hermione felt a little left out.

"She really did. Harry owled her about our mandatory stay in Hogsmeade and realised it fell on the weekend of your birthday. Ginny told us not to mention it in our letters to you because it was _the_ perfect surprise," Ron explained, "and then Harry suggested that the two of you should stay for the night, relieve stress from schoolwork and spend time with us. That's why we booked separate rooms."

"Sneaky, all of you! What makes you think I'd condone to this mischievous behaviour?" Hermione playfully asked.

"Well, for one, nearly all older years do it. You were always too uptight with rules to notice. And two, it's not like they keep track of which students come in and out of that school during the weekend anyway."

Hermione paused at the front of the shack, where the two had stood before and folded her arms as if contemplating an answer.

"All right, let's say I agree to stay. What do you suggest we do for the night, together and alone in your room?" Hermione had felt a little risky over the past couple of days and would have honestly said yes from the start. But she wanted to see how far Ron would go to convince her.

"Er-well, I'd suggest we order a ton of food for dinner, eat 'till our stomachs ache, everything on me of course, and chat the night away, cuddling, perhaps?" Ron casually said which prompted Hermione to raise a brow in his direction for his choice of activities and then followed up with, "and-er-whatever you wanna do birthday girl," trying to sound suave.

Hermione lightly smiled and wrapped her arm around his waist as they walked down the path toward Hogsmeade.

"Cuddling sounds nice," she said lastly before charming themselves to look different and entered the town.

* * *

As Hermione and Ron made their way back to the inn disguised, holding hands, and minding their own, fate decided the two would have to pass in between a stoic-looking Draco Malfoy and an austere looking Theodore Nott heading straight their way.

Hermione immediately stopped in her tracks as she felt dread wash over her while her heart raced on.

Ron was confused until he looked ahead and realised why she suddenly stopped. He squeezed her hand for reassurance and reminded her that they didn't look like themselves and should take it easy as they proceeded forward since the streets were pretty crowded. With Malfoy and Nott slowly walking around the two, Hermione tried to keep a low profile and kept her head down as she continued on.

But as they inched closer, Hermione couldn't help but react to Malfoy's ever inclosing proximity to her and made definite eye contact with him. She felt immediate recognition spread across his features and hoped to Merlin she was wrong. In that split second, it felt as if time had stopped for everyone around them and the only people fully aware of it were her and Malfoy. She could see him squint his eyes at her in curiosity before Ron's voice averted both their attention off of each other.

"Sorry?" Ron said as he turned to address Nott who she assumed had bumped into him.

"My mistake, _I_ should've watched where I was going. I overestimated a codger's sense of direction which was very inconsiderate of me," Nott snidely said.

Hermione immediately grabbed onto Ron's arm to restrain him from lunging at the boy.

"Watch it. You don't want to lose your _own_ sense of direction," Ron sneered back.

Nott mercilessly laughed at his remark, a sound Hermione did not like at all.

"Let it go," Hermione harshly whispered into Ron's ear to get him to move and prevent their identities from being revealed.

Nott could clearly see Hermione urge Ron away and snickered some more. Ron wouldn't budge and was more determined to stand his ground. Her eyes darted to Malfoy amongst her panic and found him trying to get Nott to move along as well, clearly wanting to avoid confrontation.

"It's best to listen to her old chap. I don't want to keep you up past your bedtime now," Nott lastly scorned as he turned, yanking his arm from Malfoy's grip and finally moving on.

As Hermione and Ron watched the two blend among the scatter of witches and wizards, she caught Malfoy's brief glimpse back at her before finally disappearing into the crowd.

Hermione slowly released Ron's arm and turned around, choosing to walk the rest of the way alone. Ron, realising he's upset her once more, ran after her to make up for what he did.

* * *

With the sun almost set, it was about time the students who were visiting Hogsmeade return back to Hogwarts. Hermione anxiously watched from her window the last of the students leave and felt a little naughty for staying. She never knew this was a trend amongst the older kids and began to wonder why everyone around her knew about it while she didn't.

"Should back away from the window a little. You don't wanna be seen by someone who'll recognise you," Ron warned her.

For a while, she disregarded his warning but eventually made her way over to the bed to sit. The day's events was a roller coaster of emotions and she needed time to process them and think for herself.

"Don't worry, you won't get caught," Ron assured her as she was blanking out on him.

"I'm not worried about that. It's just, I don't have any of my things. I've no toothbrush or clothes," Hermione considered, "I feel completely unequipped."

Ron only smiled at her jitteriness and walked over to his bedside and pulled out a small bag on the floor. Hermione watched as he placed it next to her and urged her to look inside.

"Ginny could honestly run against you for 'best-prepared witch for any occasion' if they had a poll."

Hermione instantly opened the bag and found it filled with her essentials, from shower necessities to extra pairs of clothing to wear. She couldn't believe the younger girl's perseverance and appreciated her more for it.

"Oh look, a negligee," Hermione blatantly stated.

Ron's ears and face immediately turned red and she couldn't help but giggle.

"She-you're serious?" Ron made his way over to Hermione's side and watched as she pulled out the light pink material, sheer all over.

"It would seem she gave me options," Hermione checked the entire piece as if she was considering wearing it, "you think I'll look good in pink?"

Ron's eyes grew wide as he scanned the piece over her front and was nearly at a lost for words.

"Hermione, you-you're joking with me, right? You don't really plan on wearing that to sleep? Right?"

"Oh of course not," Hermione assured him, "who said I'll be sleeping in it?"

Ron immediately crouched forward and started coughing uncontrollably in response. She kept patting his back to help aid his sudden fit while laughing at the whole predicament. She wasn't that much of a prude as people thought she was and liked that she could mess with him a bit.

"The look on your face!" Hermione beamed with laughter.

"You really got me there," Ron said as he came to, reaching over her to grab a bottle of gillywater on her nightstand and drinking it in gulps.

Hermione gradually came to herself and gathered the things she needed to wash up for the night. Her face grew sullen as she wasn't so sure if she was playing around anymore. It's been a long time since she'd last had an intimate moment with Ron and yearned for something more. His slower mind only hindered the hints she's already thrown at him and it bothered her.

Then again, as she finished showering and changed into her more comfortable sweatpants and t-shirt, she started to question why she was acting the way she is now. She knew a war definitely changed people but by how much and to what extent? To Ron, it seemed she was the same old Hermione Granger, an uptight know it all who stuck to rules and worried over grades. But for the past weeks or so, she had changed considerably, not wanting to answer trivial questions asked in class anymore, finishing her work late and breaking school rules so early in the year.

This was a different Hermione who could care less yet still stress a lot more because nothing was the same. With Malfoy reappearing in her life as a brand new person, she was beginning to wonder if this was the reality she survived.

Hermione accidentally splashed some water on her shirt when Ron abruptly banged on the door.

"Hermione you're taking forever, I need to go," Ron exclaimed right outside the washroom.

She sighed and opened it before Ron could have another go at banging.

He stopped his motions the moment he saw her but hurriedly rushed past her to use the loo, unintentionally slamming the door on her backside and apologising for it. He could have at least acted more mannerly around her but she knew it was a lost cause.

It wasn't long until they ate their food, recalled their days away from each other and were laying down side by side on the bed together did she feel more departed from him. Even though it reminded Hermione of the summers she would visit the Burrow and relax under the stars talking with Harry and Ron nonstop, it just wasn't the same. Similarly, it reminded her of the dreary days out on the run, laying in the tent together in silence, wondering when the war would end. All bittersweet moments she recalled as she stared nonchalantly out her window.

"Are you awake?" Ron asked before turning to his side to look at her under the moonlight.

"Yeah. I can't sleep," she said as she continued to stare out the window.

"Is it me? Would you like the bed to yourself?" Ron seriously asked as he sat up to give her some room.

Hermione didn't answer and only laid there looking at the night sky. It unnerved her that he had to ask her so many questions. He garnered no response from her as she was seemingly off in her own little world.

"Hermione, what are you thinking about right now?"

She delicately turned to look at him with eyes filled with tire yet passion. Before he could ask her what was wrong again, she sat up and leaned toward him, enough for him to fall down and lie flat on his own back. He was trapped beneath her as her arms barricaded both sides of his head, her forehead pressed against his.

"Hermione, what are you—"

She pressed her fingers to his lips to hush him and looked him dead in the eyes.

"Ron, I need you," she whispered alluringly.

She brought her leg over his body and straddled him, mind clear of all her pathetic emotions.

"Wait, wait, Hermione," Ron tried sitting back up to prevent her from going any further but her hands made their way down to his chest to hold him still.

"Don't you want this too?" Hermione airily asked.

Ron was completely bewildered by Hermione's sudden change in demeanour.

"O-of course I do, but is this what you really want?" He grabbed hold of her wrists to try and reason with her.

"What do you mean?" She innocently asked in return.

"It's your birthday, and I won't deny you the things you want, but this is just too sudden, don't you think? Are you sure you want this now?"

Hermione sat still trying to comprehend what he was saying.

"Yes, I want to do this with you _now_. Why can't you see that?" She was a little offended that Ron would question her own motives.

"Hermione, you don't understand how badly I want this too, but I just—" she had kissed and nipped him on the ear which made all his hairs stand on end, "I just feel— like this isn't how you would imagine it would go," Ron quickly expressed.

"What are you saying? That I don't know what I'm doing?" Hermione pulled away from him again and looked at him with small distaste.

"No, it's not that at all," Ron could finally sit up and pull her off of him so they could clearly talk to one another with no interruptions, "ever since we met up, you weren't exactly... you. Your mind was always somewhere else. It's like you're not even here with me right now, in the moment."

Hermione backed away and slowly brought her knees up to her chest to cradle herself as she realised what he was saying.

"I don't want you to wake up in the morning to regret a decision that you had no control over because this isn't like you, Hermione. I need you here with me right now to tell me that this is okay and it's not something you're doing out of pressure or stress or— I don't know. This just isn't you."

Ron rubbed her back in soothing motions as her eyes started to tear up. She needed something he couldn't offer because Ron had his own morals to stick by and she couldn't take that from him. She was acting out of her own nature which was startling, to say the least. Everything he was saying was true, true to the old Hermione.

But this Hermione was different. _She_ was different and he just wasn't enough to live up to her new and different expectations.

"I guess I'm just sad I won't be seeing you or Harry for a while and want to remember this moment by you," Hermione partly relayed to him.

"That's reasonable, but I don't think Hermione Jean Granger would do it this way. I'm not going to force you to do something you don't actually want to do and you shouldn't force yourself either. All you need is, to be honest with me. Please, just tell me what's going on in that brilliant mind of yours and we could work through this together."

Hermione could come up with no good reason to say she wanted to tell Ron everything, about Malfoy and about how she was feeling because he wouldn't understand. Of course, she trusted him enough, they're best friends, but as his partner, she didn't know how to open up to him intimately.

Maybe she didn't want to.

"I don't deserve being with you, Ron. You're too kind," Hermione truthfully said.

Ron, however, didn't understand the actual meaning behind her words and thought she was just being modest.

"Believe me, you're way out of my league. I question every day why someone as beautiful as you would be dating someone as average as me."

Ron reached over to Hermione to embrace her and she accepted his open arms. She didn't like herself leading him on and acting like everything was going to be okay between the two of them but she truly did not want to break his heart.

He didn't deserve it.

"Y'know, sometimes on the job, I forget about home. I have to clear my mind dealing with rogue wizards and it pains me that I can't remember how good you smell or how soft your skin is," Ron quietly recounted, trying to soothe Hermione to sleep almost.

She nestled into his chest some more, silently crying herself to sleep in his arms, trying with all her might to push out these wonderful thoughts because she didn't deserve them. She didn't deserve being with someone as genuine as Ron.


	12. Chapter Twelve

_Hermione opened her eyes to the outline of black foliage branching out against a grey sky. She was lying dead still on the ground with no will nor inkling to move. Her body was paralyzed from her chest down which made her extremely uncomfortable especially lying motionless on the rugged forest floor. Her only salvation were her eyes as they scanned her surroundings for her wand to release her from the restricting hold._

 _As Hermione tilted her head back to look above and around her, she froze in complete terror. A dark figure, mystified in black crouched a few meters away from where she lay. The moment she had reacted to it, the figure sharply turned its head her way and did the one thing she prayed it wouldn't do; it started to crawl toward her in high speed._

 _She began to panic and struggled against the invisible reins that held her down on the ground but could only watch in horror as the creature closed in. The last thing she saw was its long blackened arm reaching out to her as it neared her body before she could let out a scream..._

Hermione instantly woke and scrambled upright against the headboard out of breath. She immediately turned to her nightstand for her wand and then to Ron but found his side of the bed empty. As sunlight poured into the room signifying daytime, she realized that the scary encounter was only just another nightmare.

"Ron?" Hermione gravely called out, wondering where on Earth he'd gone off to.

"You alright Hermione?" Ron asked as he came into the room with a tray full of food.

Like second nature, Hermione instantly pointed her wand at him.

"Easy, it's just me," Ron said as he stood still keeping his eye on her, "I went out for a bit to grab you some breakfast, see?"

Realising what she was doing, Hermione dropped her wand, apologetic.

He carefully made his way over to the bed, placed the tray down on her nightstand and sat next to her.

"I'm so sorry," Hermione said with her hand placed on her chest, clearly disturbed, "I thought something happened to you or that you left me."

"I would never leave you before saying goodbye first," Ron said as he placed her head softly onto his shoulder for comfort, "it's gonna be harder for me now with you on edge."

There was silence as she looked into his eyes for clarification.

"The nightmares, they're back aren't they?"

She didn't respond for a while but had to confess.

"They never really left."

She could feel a shift in his breathing as she pulled away from him to see what was going through his head.

Ron just stared at the foot of the bed, lost in his own thoughts. She wondered if he still got them too.

She herself hadn't taken her regular dose of sleeping draught because it was left back at her dorm. A night with Ron should have kept her nightmares at bay, just like during the summer when he'd sometimes sneak into bed with her whenever she couldn't sleep. But now, it seemed his presence was no longer effective and she sighed inwardly from the disappointing change.

Hermione didn't want to talk about her nightmares anymore and glanced over at the breakfast Ron had so kindly brought up to the room.

But without warning, as she tried to get up out of bed, Ron reached for Hermione with both hands and kissed her lightly on the lips. She was clearly surprised by the sudden gesture and watched questioningly as he slowly pulled away into a small smile.

"You should eat. You must be starving," Ron offered before getting up and heading into the washroom.

Usually, Hermione could read Ron by his facial expressions and tell what he was feeling by the way he spoke, but for some reason, in that short moment after their kiss, he felt different. For the first time, she couldn't tell what he was thinking as he promptly turned away leaving her confused.

The look in his eyes was the most earnest she's ever seen him but it was the most cryptic she's ever felt. She sensed deep concernment but also a slight shift in his demeanor.

What was he thinking?

* * *

Hermione sneezed when the dust from the book she closed tickled her nose.

"Bless you," Harry said as he searched the shelves beside her, looking through some titles himself.

"Thank you."

Harry stopped scanning the shelf to stare at Hermione with a curious look on his altered face.

"What?" Hermione asked.

"Did you have fun yesterday?" Harry asked in return seeing as Hermione had remained quiet since they arrived at the bookshop.

"Yeah, of course. I'm really happy. You don't understand how much it means to me that you're here right now," she expressed with all honesty, "Ginny looks happy too, no doubt."

Harry smiled and turned his gaze to a transfigured Ginny and Ron, bickering about something close to the Tomes and Scrolls entrance.

"She is. But what about you? How's Hogwarts treating you, Hermione?" Harry asked as he crossed his arms and leaned against another shelf.

Harry was definitely more understanding than Ron. For him to look out for her the way he did pleased her.

"Fine," she said flatly. She could see his brow rise with an all-knowing look egging her on, "I suppose... she's told you everything then?" Hermione nodded once toward the younger witch.

"Tell me Malfoy isn't bothering you as much as Zabini is Ginny," Harry implored.

She nearly laughed at the notion.

"No, no he isn't," Hermione said remindful of Malfoy's face, "you need not worry."

Then the two went quiet.

Harry's particular silence fascinated her as she searched his new face for a reaction. The air was soft around him as unfamiliar eyes embedded her words into memory. Experience had encompassed Harry as he stood there, cool and collected. It was as if he'd aged so much in the short span they were away from each other that Hermione couldn't help but feel a mixture of admiration yet envy towards him even in full concealment.

He coughed lightly to clear his throat and stood up straight. She watched as he made his way over to her and pulled her close into a warm embrace.

"It goes without saying that you can tell me anything Hermione," Harry whispered, "but I can't help feeling that you'd rather deal with everything on your own which shouldn't be the case."

Hermione sharply inhaled his scent and teared up. Harry's affection always caught her off guard because she'd be the one to worry about the boy who lived through many a difficult obstacle, not the other way around.

He pulled away from her to look into her watery eyes and kissed her straight on the forehead before softly patting her hair for comfort.

"Tell me what's wrong," Harry softly encouraged.

Hermione laughed while she wiped away the tears that had escaped from her eyes.

"I guess I'm just scared of losing you two," Hermione thoughtfully phrased.

Their absence had left an empty feeling in her ever since she arrived at Hogwarts even more so when Malfoy imposed himself into her life. Not only did she feel like she'd lose them to their jobs but by her association with the Slytherin. It made her feel extremely guilty.

"Hermione, no matter what, we're here for you," Harry assured her, "you're our best friend."

This time it was she who initiated another embrace. Harry always knew how to cheer her up.

"Hey, lovebirds, ready to go?" Ginny jokingly said as she popped her head out from behind a shelf.

Hermione didn't want her to see her crying so Harry moved in her way and averted the younger girl's attention to him.

"Yeah, Hermione was having trouble deciding on what to get but she's fine now. What about you?"

"I wanted this," Ginny said timidly showing him a different volume of _Quidditch Through the Ages_.

"Alright. Take hers with you," Harry said as he gave Ginny Hermione's book and a few galleons to purchase the items with. Ginny smiled in girlish glee and quickly hugged Harry before heading to the front counter with their things.

"You didn't have to buy that for me," Hermione said, finally dry of a wet face.

"I wanted to," Harry replied as he looked on at his girlfriend, "come on before Ron notices."

Harry placed his hand gently against her back and led her toward the counter where the Weasleys continued to argue about Merlin knows what.

Hermione smiled.

When the four left the shop, it was nearly time for the boys to return to work. There was a portkey set for both Harry and Ron at the other end of Hogsmeade to a classified location. Hermione and Ginny said their sweet goodbyes and stood by watching idly as Harry and Ron waited for their empty canned drink to glow on the precise minute.

Hermione curiously watched Ron stare at the object in deep contemplation before he caught her eye. He promptly made his way toward her.

"Ron what are you doing? The portkey will activate any second now," Hermione warned.

"Hermione, I've been thinking," Ron started against her protest, "for years I've been holding you back."

"What?"

"And I want you to know that I don't want to keep you from the joys of finding yourself, something I had the privilege of doing while working as an Auror. You deserve so much more."

"Ron, what are you saying?"

"I love you, Hermione," Ron cupped her face and kissed her passionately on the lips.

When they pulled away slightly, foreheads against one another, his hands still lingering on her cheeks, he whispered close to her ear.

"But I think you and I both know it's gone as far as it could go," Ron said with his half smile.

Hermione's eyes widened in astonishment. Before she could comprehend he planted another kiss on her forehead before releasing her.

Harry called to Ron one last time and in an instant, the now ginger boy along with his spectacle-eyed companion were gone.

Hermione stood there for what felt like an eternity. Ron's incomprehensible attitude and words sunk deep into the pit of her stomach.

Did Ron just break up with her?

She thought she'd break down and cry waterfalls and snot standing there at the edge of town over a boy who had just left her, but she didn't. It honestly felt like a weight was lifted from a small corner of her heart, releasing its hold on her conscience. Relief grew amongst her small confusion as it happened all too fast for her to process.

"Hermione, ready to go?" Ginny asked breaking her from the moment.

She nodded in response and followed the younger witch back into Hogwarts and to a reality she was more willing to face.

The two made their way past the front gate with no real problems. The weekend was what she needed to attest for her pent up emotions and guilt. Hermione only needed a night with Ron to realize her feelings for him and it turned out to be mutual. The same kind of love she had for him since their school days shined brighter within her heart and she felt a little closer to him than ever before.

For sure, the moment caught her off guard, but now, she felt like she could do anything and eagerly headed for Hogwarts. The only thing stopping her was seeing the Headmistress herself stand patiently waiting at the very entrance of the castle for the two witches returning from a weekend outing at Hogsmeade.

"Miss Granger, Miss Weasley, may I ask where you've been for the past twenty-four hours?"

Just when the least of her worries started to fade away.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Hermione and Ginny stood quietly in the middle of the Headmistress' office, waiting for a proper scolding for breaking the rules. The Headmistress herself was not present in the room as she had to take care of business elsewhere, but had ordered the two to meet up in her office within five minutes since their encounter.

Hermione's heart sank as deep as it did when she was first caught out past curfew with Harry and was evidently given a detention. A punishment she remembered sharing with Malfoy that caused extreme discomfort.

It bothered her thinking of him in times when it was least helpful. Why couldn't she think of someone else?

She searched around the extensive office in an attempt to dislodge the pale face from her mind and noticed many sleeping portraits of former Headmasters and Headmistresses. Some, who she did not know the names of, were awake looking at the two stand in the middle of the room, obviously aware of their watchful eyes. It didn't bother her as much as it did finding the portrait frame of Albus Dumbledore sleeping peacefully in his chair. Alongside him was a frame labeled Severus Snape which was notably empty of a subject.

She wondered what the painted Dumbledore dreamt of and faintly smiled at its familiar caricature.

"What do you think'll be our punishment?" Ginny finally pipped up as she picked up a pair of omnioculars on top of McGonagall's desk to look through.

"Isn't it obvious?" Hermione replied, "we'll be forbidden from entering Hogsmeade for the rest of the school year."

"Blimey, I didn't think we'd get caught so easily," Ginny expressed a little agitated, "you think someone ratted us out?"

She began to play with the lens.

"Who would've known?" Hermione asked, perplexed by the notion.

Immediately Malfoy came into mind again but she reasoned it couldn't have been him. She was in disguise when they bumped into each other with no way of telling whether she'd be staying over at Hogsmeade for the night or not. He was out of the question.

"I don't know, but when I find out who, I'm going to—"

"You're going to do what Miss Weasley?" Headmistress McGonagall queried as she came into the room.

The girl immediately placed the magical object back to its original spot.

"I'm going to thank them for their trouble," Ginny sarcastically but quietly retorted.

McGonagall only gave the two a curious look as she walked over to sit behind her desk. The girls had to step forward to hear what was in store for them.

"Now, it's no secret as to why you two are here," she started, "you've broken a major school rule."

"And we take full responsibility," Hermione spoke up.

"As you should, but as a prefect, I fail to see how you could disregard school regulations so carelessly," the Headmistress expressed with grave disappointment, "especially you Miss Granger."

Hermione couldn't bring herself to rebut. McGonagall was right, her irresponsibility was all her fault. She couldn't defend her deviance.

"Professor, it was my fault, don't blame Hermione. She stayed when I couldn't bring myself back to Hogwarts. I'd gone and had myself too much butterbeer," Ginny confessed although it was a lie.

"I acknowledge your allegiance to your good friend, Miss Weasley, but that does not excuse you two from violating school rules. You know what I have to do."

"Yes professor," both Hermione and Ginny replied.

"I should revoke your visitation rights," McGonagall considered briefly, "but I won't."

Hermione and Ginny looked up at the ageing woman with wide eyes and slightly opened mouths.

"It's safe to say that you have been through quite a lot, hence the butterbeer?"

Ginny nodded her head furiously.

"Over the years I've come to realise that the both of you have no real ill intentions. Your rule breaking, as interminable as it is, is all out of good will and so it bothers me to abrogate your privileges."

Hermione found herself smiling at McGonagall's words for the older woman has gotten soft.

"But of course, I cannot let you go free without an appropriate alternative," McGonagall stood up from her desk and walked over to their side, "thirty points will be deducted from each of you and a detention must be served by the end of every week for the entire month. What say you?"

"Fine! That's totally fine by us, right Hermione?" The younger witch nudged Hermione with great enthusiasm. It was a far better punishment than she had imagined and thanked Godric for the reprieve.

"Of course. Only if the professor deems it fitting," Hermione stated questioningly.

"I have to admit, I've grown quite fond of your little group, Weasleys and all," McGonagall confessed, "but I will not play favourites. As Headmistress, I have a duty of handing out rewards and punishments with all fairness no matter the person. You do understand that?"

The girls nodded in unison.

"And I would hope for the two of you to never do that again, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, professor."

"Now that that's settled, you may go on and enjoy the rest of your weekend," McGonagall ordered, waving them off.

The girls turned to leave but Hermione was called back for some further discussion. Ginny told her she'd wait outside the office after they were done talking.

Within minutes, Hermione found herself nervously waiting for the Headmistress to speak but was met with silence as the older woman had turned her back in search of an item on one of the shelves closest to her.

It took a couple of more minutes for her to find the book she was looking for and placed it on her desk. The wiser witch pushed her square spectacles closer to the bridge of her nose with a slender finger and continued to open the book without saying one word. Hermione began to think the woman had forgotten she was standing in the very room with her.

"How are Mr Potter and Mr Weasley these days?" McGonagall asked without looking up from her book.

Hermione let out a surprised sound but quickly tried to cover it up and the fact that she had been with them in the past hour. It was a failed attempt on her part.

"It's okay Miss Granger, I've known they were in town since their Head of Department issued a notice that _Harry Potter_ would be stationed at Hogsmeade. It was only a matter of time that you'd find out."

The Headmistress looked up at Hermione and gave her a rare complimentary smile.

"They're-they're doing phenomenal, actually. They seem to have managed to sort out their lives with far more ambition in comparison to mine," Hermione recalled.

McGonagall arched a questioning brow her way.

"May I offer you some advice?" McGonagall asked to which Hermione nodded curiously, " _nothing shall you be compared to a friend, for it kills your likeness_ was what my mother had once told me when I was a student. I've always tried to follow her words ever since no matter how obscure."

She giggled softly at the pleasant thought and Hermione could see the light in her eyes gleam.

"It's good to hear they're doing well. But enough of that now, I have something I must share with you. The Head Boy and Girl have notified me of this situation and I'm repeating it to you because I trust you and your judgement as prefect, although I've caught you at a very inconvenient time."

Hermione was all ears to what McGonagall was about to say. She noticed her formal tone again and straightened up, feeling she had to prove she was still a competent prefect.

"Two students, both third years, have been hospitalised after they were found bruised and battered with no recollection of how the incident occurred. We suspect no foul play by both parties as they were friends but we cannot be certain. Perhaps an older student decided to play some tricks and it took a turn for the worse. Who knows? But I was told you were able to handle a possibly similar situation not too long ago and would like to hear your thoughts on the matter."

Hermione was surprised that bullying was still a thing even after the war. Did no one learn from the repercussions?

"Are the two students from the same house?"

If they were from Slytherin, she had an idea who might have been behind the attack.

"No. They're from the Houses of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff," McGonagall informed.

Unfortunately, not the same culprits she had in mind.

"Who initially reported the incident?"

Hermione had begun to feel as if the Headmistress was tasking her to find out who was responsible. After all, she was the smartest witch of her age and a prefect who would have the means to do so.

"The incident occurred yesterday and was reported by Mr Malfoy. Right before students were returning to Hogwarts, he found them lying unconscious near the Hog's Head."

Hermione's heart began to pound in her chest and her skin prickled. She could clearly remember him and Nott make their way into Hogsmeade yesterday, walking further into town, possibly to that dark pub. Her brain started to formulate probable answers to this mystery and the only logical explanation so far was that Nott might have had something to do with it as he did seemed a little chafed. Malfoy, as a prefect, probably covered it up to save the git's arse, or had done the worse and joined in on the beating.

But that was only an assumption. It couldn't be taken literally without evidence.

"I don't expect you to know all who were involved, but if you know something or have any speculations, please let the Heads know and they shall report back to me. Other than that, I advise you keep a wary eye when patrolling from here on out."

Hermione was let go for the time being. It seemed the information McGonagall provided was not unintentional as the Heads could have just told the rest of the prefects in an upcoming meeting. Most likely McGonagall wanted Hermione to figure this out on her own and she was honoured, but the fact was, she could barely figure herself out at the moment.

She was no detective but it wouldn't hurt to try and do some good in her last year at Hogwarts and so she took it upon herself to find out who was behind the mysterious beating.

Before Hermione could leave, she addressed McGonagall one last time.

"Professor, how did you know that Ginny and I had stayed at Hogsmeade overnight? Surely it wasn't a top priority to know where we were at the time."

"Let's just say, a little bird told me," McGonagall answered with an ambiguous tone.

Hermione left wondering who that may be.

* * *

"I can't believe we got away with that, and with McGonagall too?" Ginny exclaimed as they walked away from her office.

"Well don't expect to be lucky with her next time," Hermione reminded, "not to say that there'll be a next time."

"Oh, lighten up. Next time, we'll just be more careful," the redhead paused as she saw Hermione's glare, "kidding! Come on Hermione, I'm not that thickheaded."

A loud growl erupted from somewhere and when Hermione found the source, laughed. Ginny held her stomach and proclaimed she was hungry and was heading to the Great Hall to eat lunch. Hermione, on the other hand, had a huge breakfast and opted out. She wanted to restock on some sleeping draught and also meet the students who were attacked. Maybe they could tell her something that might lead her in the right direction.

After the girls parted, Hermione made her way up the four flights of stairs toward the hospital wing. When she reached the landing, it didn't take long to notice the always eye-catching Malfoy from the corner of her eye climbing further up. Curiosity got the better of her in the end and she found herself following him at a great distance.

The boy didn't stop until he reached the seventh floor and continued on down the corridor to where Hermione was sure was the place she'd avoided venturing to ever since she stepped foot inside the castle.

The corridor itself was notably bare of students as the Slytherin walked down and around the corner with swift ease. He turned in the direction where the Room of Requirement was located which caused Hermione to stop in her tracks as she began to feel an overwhelming sense of anxiety.

She couldn't let the past frighten her and so gathered her courage to continue onward.

Another empty hall appeared once she turned the same corner and Malfoy was nowhere in sight. He must have gone into the Room of Requirement, she thought and stopped short in front of the door's supposed entrance.

She knew the room opened for those with dire needs but at the moment, Hermione couldn't think of what was needed to know where he was. She didn't even know whether she'd want to see him and pondered all the possible reasons as to why Malfoy needed the Room of Requirement. She walked past the tapestry opposite the room three times after she'd made her resolve and turned toward the bare wall. Slowly, two doors materialised in front of where she stood, waiting to be opened and carefully reached for one of the door handles.

Hermione pushed the door to reveal a massive room filled with piles of scorched items. The air was dusty from the ashes that blanketed over the broken furniture and decrepit objects. Small bits of debris floated in the air and the floor was painted black with soot. This was the aftermath of the fiendfyre that devoured the inside.

But what was Malfoy doing in a place like this?

She decided to move along in hopes to resolve her fears.

A couple of feet in and she had stepped on something that broke under the weight of her foot. Hermione looked down, surprised to see an almost unrecognisable diadem, burnt charcoal to the core. She debated on whether to pick the bedevilled object up and decided not to and walked further along inside.

Eventually, as she manoeuvred around the heaps of junk, she found the very person she sought standing in front of a charred and broken cabinet. She stopped to watch what Malfoy planned to do, but when he did nothing, she let out a silent breath of relief.

"I didn't expect you'd follow me here," Malfoy calmly said, loud enough to jerk her to attention.

There was no use trying to hide and so she made her way to him.

"Is there something you need from me?"

Malfoy turned the moment she was a few feet away and locked eyes. She inhaled deeply when she met his winter grey orbs and froze on the spot, not knowing what to do with herself. Again Malfoy had caught her in a susceptible state. Her mind cleared of all thought.

"I wanted to see you," Hermione outright admitted.

Her response sounded foreign spoken aloud.

Malfoy didn't react too much, she noticed and broke contact for a brief second before finding her eyes again. His hands were in his pockets and he stood laid back. Eventually, he began to close the distance between them both and approached her with caution; they were close enough to one another, the tops of their shoes touched.

Hermione's urge to step back or attack him was completely thrown out the window as she stood her ground and looked up at him square in the face. She waited for him to respond.

"Is that so?"

She gulped. Why didn't she run? Or hex him for that matter? What made her want to see what he'd do next?

"You're mental if you feel that way," Malfoy stated before backing away.

She found herself craving his touch.

"It's true. That's how I got in," Hermione firmly responded, hoping he'd come back to her, "this room opened to me when I wanted to see you."

It took a while for her to process what she had said and when she did, it was too late. Hermione had gone along and confessed this odd attraction towards Malfoy even though she couldn't explain it to him or herself.

She saw his eyes widen slightly in surprise. No one saw this coming. She watched his chest rise then fall and wanted to know what went through his mind.

Malfoy spoke, startling her, "I wanted to see you too."

Her heart skipped a beat.

"To give this back to you," Malfoy reached into his pocket and pulled out a small object.

He opened his palm and revealed the same exact S.P.E.W. pin Ron had given her the day before.

"Happy Belated Birthday."

She reached out for the tiny object, careful not to touch his skin, and picked it up to analyse it.

"Where did you get this?"

"When we passed one another in Hogsmeade," Malfoy explained, searching for her reaction, "you must have dropped it when the altercation happened."

Hermione's eyes slowly widened as she began to register what he was saying.

"How do you know..?"

Suddenly, something clicked for her.

He always knew where she was or whenever she was around even when she was under a powerful concealment charm. She recalled the time when he spoke about her thinking too loud and even knowing her own birthday. With this knowledge, it wasn't hard to figure out how he managed.

Malfoy was a skilled legilimens.

She stared at him to confirm her suspicions not saying a word. Without missing a beat, Malfoy nodded.

"It makes sense," Hermione said, "that you're capable of invading people's thoughts."

She said the last part with little distaste. After all, he was trained to be a death eater.

"I don't read all thoughts. That goes against my moral decency," Malfoy tried to explain.

Hermione wanted to believe him.

"I wouldn't lie to you."

Her chest ached.

"So you've known what I was thinking about this whole time?"

Malfoy nodded and Hermione found herself blushing red. Her heart began to beat irregularly again.

"Then why aren't you disgusted by me? I'm a mudblood yet you keep..." she paused when he approached her again, "you keep coming close..."

Malfoy now stood only inches away from her. She had to press against his chest to keep some distance and looked away.

"I don't know. I can't stop thinking about you either."

He gently grabbed her wrist on his chest and watched her lift her head up towards him.

It took every ounce of her being to stop herself from grabbing hold of him and indulge in his touch.

"You shouldn't fight it, Hermione," he spoke softly.

His sudden use of her first name felt far too good then she would care to admit and shuddered from the rich sound of his voice.

Fight what?

"Your urges."

His other hand reached to cradle her cheek and she gave in. She leaned her head into his cold palm and closed her eyes from the dream-like state she found herself in. It was almost euphoric.

"But it's wrong," Hermione pushed herself to say as she opened her eyes.

Before he could respond, she pulled away from his hands in utter defeat.

She didn't know what to feel anymore. Just hours before she was in bed with Ron and now, in Malfoy's hands. What was wrong with her?

"I'm sorry," Hermione quickly uttered as she stepped back, "I don't know why I followed you."

She turned away and promptly left without a single glance back at Malfoy. A tiny part of her wished he'd stop her from leaving but as she reached the door and made it down the corridor descending the staircase, the time had come and gone.

Hermione Granger was reprehensibly attracted to Draco Malfoy and she didn't know what to do.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

Monday afternoon in double potions, Hermione and Ginny had paired together to work on the day's potion assignment. Hermione's deafening silence, along with the unknown butterflies fluttering inside of her stomach, aroused Ginny's curiosity as she had never seen her so quiet when it came to classwork.

"Hermione, is something the matter?"

The older witch, busy mechanically stirring, was almost startled by the question.

"Oh. No, it's nothing," she quickly quipped.

But every so often, her thoughts had wandered to Malfoy and wanting to be near him constantly thrashed around in her head. She froze, trying to contain her thoughts in fear of being overheard by him and Ginny had to ask her again what was wrong.

"I think I forgot an ingredient," Hermione lied, staring wide-eyed into her cauldron, "I'll go grab it."

Before Ginny could speak up, Hermione had already made her way toward the potions cabinet.

There in the very back of the dungeon, no one could see her brood over a certain Slytherin as she opened the large cabinet doors. She fixated her gaze up at the extensive collection of ingredients on the shelves and faked considering what to bring back.

As she reached for a specific jar resting on a high shelf, a hand had crept its way up the length of her outstretched arm before grabbing her wrist which caused her to audibly gasp in surprise. Another hand had snaked its way onto her opposite hip and held her steady as not to move. The touch of cold fingers gently caressing the little bit of skin exposed above the waistband of her skirt made her jolt in reaction. She knew immediately who it was.

Malfoy's sudden breath on her neck made her legs shake and toes tingle. Every strand of hair on her body stood on end and the butterflies trapped inside her stomach started creating whirlwinds.

What was he doing here?

"I forgot an ingredient," he answered as he released his grip on her wrist and reached for the jar she was aiming for.

Her face flushed pink and she dared not move for she couldn't take it if someone were to see them positioned in such a way.

"What are you doing?" Hermione murmured in a deathly quiet tone but garnered no response.

She, on the other hand, gasped yet again from the feeling of his chest pushed forward against her back. He was practically barricading her against the cabinet.

"Now why would you need ginger? Your solution doesn't call for this ingredient," Malfoy inquired, his voice low in a whisper, causing goosebumps.

She couldn't turn to face him. She couldn't even respond to his words as they were not processing in her head. She could only wait for what he'd say next.

"Granger," he placed the bottle back to where it belonged, "what are you hiding from?"

Or rather, who? Because it was him. She was hiding from him even though she didn't want to. His presence wasn't unwanted, in fact, it was longed for.

But she was scared to face that truth.

"You shouldn't fight it," Malfoy whispered in her ear, reminding her of their fateful encounter the day before.

Her pulse beat furiously.

His hand that lingered on her hip slowly disappeared, to her odd dissatisfaction, and he pulled away.

Before she could turn and ask him to clarify, he had already left.

Hermione leaned back against the shelves trying to catch her breath. The sudden contact and bold acclamation befuddled her, to say the least. It had got her heart pumping no doubt but the spark that ran down her spine from his touch bewildered her. Ron had never made her feel that way, maybe slightly in the beginning of their romance, but not so much to this extent. It almost paralysed her. If Malfoy had gone further, how exactly would Hermione react?

Lost in thought, she hadn't realised the same Ravenclaw girl who had complimented her hair before, had appeared and asked if Hermione was all right.

She apologised for being in the way and promptly left for her table without an ingredient in hand.

When she reached her group members, Malfoy was already staring her down but looked as oblivious as the rest when Ginny asked what took her so long.

"I realised we already had it," Hermione improvised as she saw a jar of porcupine quills near Ginny and picked them up to show her.

Ginny furrowed her brows in confusion but left the girl to her own devices and surprisingly continued on speaking with Zabini about their work.

Hermione walked back to her station with her eye on a busy Malfoy and aimed some good expletives his way for confounding her.

She watched carefully as the corner of his lips rose into a smirk but his eyes remained on his task of crushing the ingredients in his mortar. She couldn't help but smile herself at the sight of how arrogantly handsome he was and continued to do her own work peacefully.

* * *

Up until dinner time, Hermione had managed to suppress her thoughts and continued her day with great ease. After she ate to her heart's content, fortunately with no Malfoy in sight to disrupt her, Hermione decided to head straight to the hospital wing once more to speak with the third years she didn't have the chance to interview before.

She walked contemplatively of possible questions to ask the younger years without sounding too intimidating, not realising she'd pass a group of Slytherins hanging out in the corridor. She would have gone by with no trouble if it weren't for Nott who decidedly called out to her the moment he saw her walk by.

"Where are you heading to Granger?"

Hermione didn't answer and continued walking. Nothing like being made some form of merriment by a large group of Slytherin peers made her want to pass as quickly and as quietly as possible. She had far more important matters to worry about.

Her disregard, however, prompted Nott to follow her and stop her in her tracks before she could reach the next corridor.

"Happy Belated Birthday, _love_ ," Nott whispered so as the rest of the group couldn't hear him.

Hermione was about to ask how he knew about that but stopped when the boy reached inside of his robe pocket.

On instinct, she reached for her own wand.

"At ease, it's a just a gift."

He pulled out an exquisite envelope with the letters _S.C._ printed in fine cursive. He handed the article over to her to which she reluctantly took from him.

"First of Slughorn's dinner parties is happening a week from now and he's asked me to give this to you," he remarkably said in such a civil manner, "hopefully, we'll reacquaint by then."

She looked incredulous at the envelope and then back at him. Why would Slughorn invite Nott? His father was a prominent Death Eater, surely he didn't want to associate himself with his family.

"Theo, what are you doing talking to her? Come back to us!" One of the girls from the group yelled across the hall.

Hermione saw how the girls looked abhorrently at her to which she apathetically looked away.

"I don't want it," Hermione finally spoke, "you can give it to one of your girls there. I'm sure they'll love to go with you."

It was one thing that the club was pretentious and overbearing but it was another that Nott had to be the one to remind her of it. She gave the envelope back to Nott and defiantly walked around him.

"You know you're one of my girls too, Granger. I've grown pretty fond of you for the past couple of days. You think I'd have better taste, really," he called to her, this time, loud enough for his group to overhear.

She stopped right in her tracks and sharply turned on the spot. His stupid grin irritated her and she had the utmost urge to hex it off his stupid face.

"Don't go spouting nonsense," Hermione retorted as she walked back to Nott, "I am nobody to you just like how you are nobody to me."

He continued to tease, "What's the matter? Afraid you'll like me back?"

"In your dreams," Hermione retaliated and turned around to leave.

Nott's highly amused expression never left his face as he watched her go.

In time, Hermione managed to calm herself from getting so riled up by Nott's words. She knew the Slytherin only said things to piss her off for his own amusement and that she should ignore it to the best of her ability. Sometimes it was hard to and she berated herself for falling for his verbal chicanery.

Eventually, the stairwell leading to the hospital wing was in sight when she turned the corner. She continued walking to her destination free of students, and Slytherins, to her relief.

Well, that was what she thought until a smooth voice stopped her in her tracks. To her right in a smaller and emptier hallway, Malfoy stared inquisitively at her. He leaned against the wall on his shoulder with his hands in his pockets, ankles crossed.

"What was that about being Nott's girl?" Malfoy asked. It was something she had not expected him to overhear, let alone question.

Hermione wanted to tell him she had nothing to do with Nott, that he was an idiot and that she'd rather Malfoy confessed his fondness for her. All her thoughts barraging her mind in waves.

She noticed again the upward curl of his lips, showing off his perfectly white teeth that made her heart throb.

"It was nothing."

He already knew that. She didn't know why she had to explain herself.

Malfoy nodded in acknowledgement and turned his gaze down the corridor, "where are you headed?"

Hermione was suddenly reminded where and decided that she didn't want him to know less he was involved.

"Hermione."

Her shoulders shuddered and her feet tingled. Why must his voice elicit such a drastic response from her? He barely touched her.

"I wasn't aware we were on first name basis now," Hermione said needing to counteract his effects on her.

"We aren't," he got up off the wall and approached her, "I just wanted to see you squirm a bit, that's all."

Well, it worked. She doubled down in size as his tall and lean figure towered over her. Stepping out into the light of the evening, his composure and air of eminence radiated off of his body. His smell was intoxicating, a scent rich enough only the wealthiest could afford, she knew.

Draco Malfoy was like no creature she'd met before.

The back of his fingers came up to the side of her cheek and brushed ever so gently against her skin. He pinched a curly stray between his thumb and forefinger and softly rubbed it as he uttered, "be safe now."

And that was that. He let go then left.

She watched entranced as he walked away in the direction opposite of where she was headed and deeply exhaled.

What exactly did he feel for her?

* * *

"Miss Granger! It's nice to see you again. Need another refill?" Madam Pomfrey asked, speaking of the sleeping draught. She just finished tucking a younger student into bed.

"Actually Madam Pomfrey, I was sent here by the Headmistress. She spoke to me about two students who were victims of an assault. They woke up with no memory of what happened and I was wondering if I could talk to them about the incident."

Hermione figured if she mentioned the Headmistress, Madam Pomfrey would understand the severity of the situation, even if McGonagall did not exactly send her.

"It's a bit late for that isn't it?" the matron asked, "but if you must."

She led Hermione to the back of the wing to a long curtain drawn over two beds. She excused herself before pulling the curtain to reveal two third-year boys playing wizard's chess in their bandages. They looked up and were surprised to see Hermione.

"Boys, Miss Granger here would like to speak with you if she can."

Both Gryffindor and Hufflepuff nodded politely. Madam Pomfrey pulled up a chair for Hermione to sit in between their beds and notified them they were allowed fifteen minutes tops before curfew and left them alone.

"Hello, I'm—"

"Hermione Granger!" the boy who wore a proud Hufflepuff t-shirt exclaimed with a heavy Scottish accent. He was genuinely delighted to see her and she couldn't help but smile back. The other boy, from Gryffindor, looked smug but excited nonetheless.

"Did I interrupt a game?" Hermione asked as she motioned at the chessboard propped on top of a bedside table. It immediately reminded her of when Harry and Ron played wizard's chess against each other in their school days.

"No, of course not. We're just playing to pass the time here." The Gryffindor timidly rubbed his hands together as he spoke.

"How long until your wounds heal?"

"Madam Pomfrey says that after tonight, we'll be able to go back to our rooms, despite these, " the Hufflepuff chimed in pointing at his own bandages.

Hermione nodded before addressing them again, "I didn't catch your names."

"Lachlan Baird," the Hufflepuff replied.

"Walter Jones," answered the Gryffindor.

"Hermione Granger," she responded as she reached out to each boy and shook their hands.

"It's such an honour to meet you. I mean you're _the_ Hermione Granger, a member of the Golden Trio. Your brains helped us win the war!" Lachlan had so much enthusiasm, it startled her.

"You don't think she already knows that? She must be so tired of hearing it, you probably ruined our chances of asking for an autograph," Walter chided.

"It's okay. I'm really flattered. I wouldn't mind giving you my autograph though I've never done one before."

A small " _yes_!" escaped from Lachlan's lips and Walter thanked her for the both of them.

"But before I can do that, may I ask you two some questions regarding the incident?"

She wanted to get to it as soon as possible.

"Sure, but we honestly don't remember much," Walter said looking at Lachlan who had nodded in agreement.

"It's okay. I just wanted to know what you two have been up to prior. Anything unusual happened?"

Lachlan pressed his forefinger and thumb against his chin contemplating what he could remember. Walter stared wide-eyed at the chess board as he rubbed his hands together, also searching his memory.

"Well, it was our first ever Hogsmeade trip. We were both excited to head to every shop in town and spend all our allowance, isn't that right Walt?"

"Yeah. We went into town and bought candy, new supplies, tricks, you name it."

"Noted," Hermione had summoned the tissue paper on their bedside table and recorded their answers with the flick of her wand. Their words appeared on the soft tissue and Lachlan couldn't help contain his amazement at her magic.

"Cool!"

"Lachlan, focus," Walter insisted, "we're supposed to tell her what we remember."

"Right, right."

Hermione needed to redirect their attention.

"Did you remember seeing anyone strange following you or give off a weird feeling?"

"Hm... I don't think so, sorry."

"No, no it's okay. I just really want to catch the person who's done this to you guys," she reassured, "may I ask why you two decided to head to the Hog's Head? It's not as popular as the Three Broomsticks."

"We just wanted to check it out. After all, the first meeting of Dumbledore's Army was held there," Lachlan looked expectant of a reaction from Hermione but received none, "but when we made our way there... everything gets hazy and we can't remember a thing."

Hermione figured whoever obliviated the two boys was highly skilled, managing to take away a specified sliver of memory from that day's events.

"And you're sure you didn't see anyone out of the ordinary to you? Any older stud-"

"Okay everyone, it's about time you all head to bed now," Madam Pomfrey interrupted announcing all in the wing to hear.

She came over to the boys and Hermione to tell them their interview was over unfortunately and escorted her to the entrance after she wrote her name on tissue papers to give to the boys as was promised.

"I hope you got what you came here for," the older woman spoke, "it's awful what happened to those boys."

Hermione expressed similar feelings before she inquired about some more sleeping draught. She actually did need a refill but didn't want to ask until after.

"I knew you'd come back for some more," Madam Pomfrey reached into her apron pocket and pulled out a small phial of the solution, "here you go."

Hermione thanked the nurse and left the hospital wing holding onto the phial tightly in her hand.

* * *

 _AN: Thank you all for your kind words. This is my first time writing fanfiction in general and so I was scared no one would read it, or worse, think it was bad and make nasty comments on how much my writing sucks. Trust me, I don't think I'm the best but I try and improve every time I'm inspired to write a chapter. Constructive criticism is highly appreciated, I don't want to deter that because not everyone is perfect. Thank you all again and stay alert for more to come!_

— _Haru_


	15. Chapter Fifteen

With two hands and a taste for rich espresso, Hermione held her coffee mug delicately in between her palms and sipped her warm cappuccino for breakfast. Both of her elbows were propped up on the table as she watched students and some professors make their tired way into the Great Hall. The routine dazed her until Malfoy appeared at the front doors and made his way to his table. Her skin prickled at the sight of him and his lengthy silver hair, it made her wonder whether he had plans to take on his own father's appearance.

As he took his seat in a more secluded area, he abruptly looked up, caught Hermione's gaze and smiled as if he'd heard what she thought said aloud and lightly shook his head.

Soon enough, Luna came over, obstructed Hermione's view and sat herself down. Within the girl's paint-stained hands was a large stack of the Quibbler's latest issue which she proceeded to give to Neville, Hermione, and Ginny respectively.

"If you turn to page six, there's a really good article on the conservation of graphorns and how to protect them from poachers," Luna suggested, "they're an incredibly rare species but are endangered with numbers nearing extinction. There is still hope for them though as daddy has told me a small herd was spotted in the mountains of Hungary not too long ago."

Hermione, somewhat curious, felt the need to respond as the other two only stared at her in silence. "That's great to hear, Luna."

Ginny looked at the cover sceptically at first before placing it down in acknowledgement and continued to eat her cereal. Neville opened the tabloid and turned to the page Luna suggested and began to read as he ate his scrambled eggs. Hermione, on the other hand, wanted to question the Ravenclaw some more about the article's contents. But before she could ask, Luna had already gotten up from her spot and made her rounds following many unsuspecting students in order to give them a copy.

Hermione smiled at Luna's friendly yet aberrant approach she had almost forgotten about Malfoy.

The feeling that crawled along the surface of her skin under his watchful eye had gradually disappeared as he was no longer in sight.

By the end of the school day, right before her last class, Hermione quietly waited outside of her classroom. A sea of students crowded the hallway as they all rushed past. Understandably, Hermione stepped back to give way to those that hurried on by in front of her, but as soon as she did so, lost her balance from a solid shove to her back and stumbled forward. An unfamiliar "you dropped something" resounded in her ear to which she immediately snapped around to see who had pushed her so hard. Unfortunately, the flood of students made identifying the culprit impossible, leaving nothing but what she assumed was that "something" she had supposedly dropped.

Hermione carefully picked up a ripped piece of parchment paper off the floor, the only thing worth noticing, and flipped it over to see what was written on the back.

 _Stay Away From Slytherin_ was slovenly scrawled onto the piece of paper.

She reread the words quietly in her head and looked around the hall in search of whoever wrote such a threatening prose.

Hermione's pulse suddenly began to race. Maybe it was one of the girls from Nott's group who mistakenly believed she was involved with him. Or maybe it was given to her by accident. Though that wouldn't explain the brute contact she received. Whatever it was, it was yet another mystery she had the absolute pleasure of solving.

What fun.

* * *

Dusk gradually fell onto the sleeping castle as Hermione strolled toward the library. When she entered the enormous space, she weaved between the bookshelves and desks to her favourite spot and what wasn't a surprise, found Malfoy sitting in her seat doing his work.

As usual, he didn't look up and continued to write in silence.

"Mr Malfoy. Pleasure seeing you here," Hermione said as she took up the chair directly across from him.

He lifted his head from the sound of her voice and gave her one of his distinctive smiles.

"Likewise, Miss Granger."

His reply made her face light up.

"What are you working on?" Hermione leaned forward on her elbows to see what he was writing.

"Just an essay I have to finish."

Upon further inspection, her eye spotted written numerological functions scribbled all over his parchment.

"I didn't know you took Arithmancy," she expressed in awe.

The look in his glistening eyes told her there was a lot she didn't know about him.

"Is there something you need from me?" He averted the subject matter with his rhythmic yet cold resonance that she knew meant no harm.

Hermione ignored him to set aside her own supplies. She pulled out some scrolls and textbooks, showcasing the amount of workload she too had accumulated and placed them conveniently around herself. When she opened her copy of _Advanced Runes Translation_ , the small piece of parchment from earlier that day slipped its way over to his side without her knowing.

Malfoy picked it up and read what was on it.

" _Stay away from Slytherin_."

Hermione jolted from the familiar saying recited aloud.

"That's nothing!" Hermione yelped as she attempted to grab the note back.

Malfoy pulled it away from her reach, however, and looked at her questioningly.

"Memento?"

His tone grew surprisingly stern.

"What? No, I didn't write that. Someone shoved it at me when I was waiting for my next class but I didn't get to see who, sadly."

Malfoy eyed the note in his hand with interest. Hermione was curious about what he was thinking at the moment.

"I really should report it as it's considered a threat, but with no face to connect it to, there'd be no point," Hermione reasoned.

She was used to the threats and bullies. It wasn't something she hadn't tried to stop before. Being made a prefect did help lessen the taunting but that alone didn't stop the endless ridicule throughout her whole school career. Luckily for her, one of her tormentors decided to stop his foolish ways and befriended Hermione instead.

"By chance, do you know of anyone who might've been up to this? I have to assume it's not just me they're targeting."

Malfoy slowly dropped the hand he held the note in and gave her a contemplative look.

"No, I don't know anyone who would do something this juvenile. What makes you think this came from Slytherin?"

Hermione stopped herself from answering that it was obvious as tension started to grow between them. She didn't miss the underlying implication.

"I'll admit, Slytherins aren't as welcomed here as they once were, due to our ties with... dark magic," he softly spoke, offering some insight, "but that doesn't mean we're going around threatening others, _especially_ not after all that's happened."

She could sense his aversion towards her blatant accusation and felt awful.

Her silence opted him to continue. "Your pool of suspects is a lot larger than you think."

He was undoubtedly right. She knew she shouldn't have been quick to believe someone from Slytherin had threatened her. It could have easily been a member of another household warning her to disassociate herself from them, causing an even greater divide amongst the honourable houses. She knew she was smarter than to assume without taking other factors into consideration.

Hermione jumped, startled when Malfoy's leg rubbed against hers under the table. They were a lot closer together than she thought.

"Don't beat yourself over it," he reassured.

"I'm sorry. I honestly don't know what has got into me. I'm usually more open-minded than this."

Malfoy raised a curious brow. "It's not entirely your fault. Do you remember Frances and Hotch?" she nodded and wondered what point he was trying to make, "well they're not the only ones perpetuating the stereotypes."

"What do you mean?"

Malfoy looked off into the bookshelves to the right of him as if sensing someone had approached. When no one appeared from behind, he turned back to Hermione and continued.

"Some of the older, more traditional students have a strong need for respect and to feel a sense of superiority over others. But if they're no longer receiving that among their peers, than they take it out on the younger years."

The gears in her head started to turn while her stomach clenched. What an awful practice.

"Young Slytherins aren't immune to it either, unfortunately."

It was disheartening to hear the inner turmoils of the Slytherin House and Malfoy was placed right at the centre of it just when he was starting to change. She wondered how much of it was affecting him.

"Of course, you shouldn't assume all of us are like that," Malfoy mindfully stated as his other shin shifted in between hers.

She narrowed her eyes at him. His actions contrasted drastically with his words which confused her, not knowing how to feel at the moment.

"I'll make note of that for future reference," Hermione said smiling as she saw a light flicker in his eyes.

Malfoy had leaned in on his own elbows and edged toward her. Hermione's body instinctually leaned forward too, yearning to see what he'd do or say next.

"Not everybody is as receptive as you," he took a loose curl from her cheek and twirled it around his finger, "this problem calls for some house unity, don't you think?"

Hermione's breath hitched. "What do you suppose we do?"

Suddenly, Malfoy stopped all his teasing and pulled away from her completely. He pointed his wand at his supplies and charmed them neatly away into his book bag.

"Tomorrow's the first Quidditch game of the season," he said as he got up from his seat.

Hermione had to tilt her head back to take in his full height. The thrilling feeling she got from his touch vanished.

"What does that have anything to do with house unity? Quidditch only pits the houses against one another even more."

She straightened herself out not realising how much her body was drawn towards him.

"It's Slytherin versus Ravenclaw," he spoke, hulling his strap over his shoulder and ignoring her, "you should come and watch."

And with that, he was gone.

Malfoy's words left a strange hum in her ears. It didn't hit Hermione on what he meant until later when she peered over at the offending piece of parchment paper laying perfectly still on the table top in front of her.

Baby steps she thought.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Hermione meticulously climbed up the narrow wooden stairs with Ginny, Luna, and Neville tailing behind her. The redhead looked chafed while the round-faced boy looked apprehensive. Only the sprightly blonde girl appeared quite the opposite, gleefully sporting her Ravenclaw eagle hat along with snake earrings that coiled around the shells of her ears in an unfamiliar atmosphere.

"I don't see why we had to come," Ginny complained with a grimace.

"It'll be fun!" Luna exclaimed over the loud yet muffled noises of a crowd.

" _Fun_ may be an overstatement," piped Neville in reply to his enthusiastic girlfriend.

Once the four had made it onto the landing, wandering eyes from the already filled bleachers settled on their abrupt appearances and scorned them.

"How inviting," Ginny sarcastically stated as she glared back at all of the Slytherin students staring them down as they made their way toward the front, "why do we have to sit here again? There are good seats over at Ravenclaw's side."

Hermione finally decided to speak. "I thought it'd be nice for a change to promote inter-house camaraderie. Who better to ask to help showcase that than you three?"

Ginny's brow rose, confused at first then shrugged in defeat. The girl was prideful and begrudgingly took the compliment.

The four finally situated themselves in the only spot available, closer to the bottom of the Quidditch field, right in front of the Slytherin crowd.

Once they were settled, Neville peered forward against the railing at the vast open field and nodded in approval. "The view isn't so bad."

Luna was too caught up in her own little world staring at the clouds to notice while Ginny was busy glowering at some boys who wouldn't stop grinning at her down the bench.

Hermione felt too anxious to respond herself and quietly waited for the game to begin. She honestly didn't know what came over her for suggesting they sit with Slytherin, but when Malfoy's face popped up in her head inviting her to come and watch, she was reminded why.

It wasn't long before a pleasant orotund voice echoed throughout the stands signifying the game was about to begin. This year's announcer was a girl from Hufflepuff with a dark pixie cut named Laura Madley who had multiple piercings on her ears, nose, and brow and wore a thin spiked choker. It wasn't the conventional Hufflepuff look but one Hermione very much liked that she eagerly clapped in accordance to the girl's announcement alongside the audience's ramped up excitement.

By now the Ravenclaw team had already made their way onto the field, mounted upon their brooms and were floating high above the pitch showing off their players in a fashion all eagles lauded for. Not too long after them, came the Slytherin team who in turn produced the same amount of resonance from their fellow serpents and the wait for Madam Hooch began.

Hermione could easily spot out Malfoy suited in his Quidditch gear quite nicely, suspended on his broom waiting on standby. He seemed far too focused watching Madam Hooch bring out the trunk of balls to notice her that it startled Hermione when he did make eye contact.

She nearly missed the small upward curl of his lips before he was blocked entirely by a fellow teammate making their way to him. The contact was brief to her disappointment but refreshing as it alleviated some of her anxiety.

In time, with everyone in position, the sound of Madam Hooch's whistle screeched and all of the players flew off at lightning speed.

Ten minutes into the game, Hermione had watched in amazement, like everyone around her, Malfoy score the first points for Slytherin. She listened intently as the announcer expressed great awe at Malfoy's surprising skill as chaser and the Slytherin crowd could not have agreed more with their amplified cheers. Some girls were practically screaming his name thirty minutes in, notably the usually timid Daphne Greengrass who didn't hold back when it came to expressing her admiration for Malfoy in the form of mandrake screeches.

The hostility in the air had indeed died down and reached an all new level of feverish energy that even Ginny was out of her seat watching the game in mere astonishment.

With every passing moment, Slytherin seemed to accumulate points in rapid-fire, managing a 50 point lead on Ravenclaw with great ease and still no snitch in sight.

"Bloody hell," Neville expressed in disbelief as he saw Malfoy yet again throw a quaffle into the centre post, angering the Ravenclaw keeper.

The smirk that smeared across his handsome face pulled at Hermione's heartstrings. Perspiration fell from his forehead as he flew in the cold air, a look of determination in his eyes she's never seen before. He was practically glowing amongst the players.

"Look there," Luna suddenly called out and immediately the three averted their attention at an incoming bludger aimed directly at Malfoy's back.

Hermione's heart skipped a beat out of fear he'd get hit and closed her eyes.

"And a nice save from Slytherin Beater Byron Miller, who expertly hit the bludger away from Malfoy in time! Any second longer and Slytherin's new ace player would have..."

Hermione immediately opened her eyes and scanned the air for Malfoy and exhaled in relief when she saw him reach out to clasp Miller's hand in gratitude before flying off.

She inwardly laughed for worrying over a boy who trained for gameplay like this but still felt uneasy with how dangerous the game could be. After all this time watching Harry, Ron and Ginny play, she still could not get used to it.

Nevertheless, the game persisted on. Grey clouds started to form overhead and Hermione could hear the restless students urge the seekers to hurry and catch the snitch before it started to rain.

It wasn't until an hour after the near miss, Ravenclaw seeker Harriet Ellesmere finally caught the golden snitch. Though a huge advantage on their part, Ravenclaw still lost by a slight margin of 10 points to Slytherin who ended up earning 200 points in total against their accumulated 190.

An explosive roar erupted from the Slytherin stands with a chanting chorus that followed. The look on both Ginny and Neville's faces screamed incredulity while Luna clapped to show good sportsmanship. It was one of the closest games to date that even Hermione knew how momentous it was.

"Who knew Malfoy was so..." Ginny was trying to find the right word to describe him as she waited behind a large crowd exiting the stands.

"Well-practiced?" A deep voice suggested right on top of Ginny, she almost bumped into the source.

Zabini politely nodded at the group with a curious looking Astoria Greengrass by his side.

Ginny looked more surprised than bitter that she almost bumped into him.

"You had the right idea for sitting here on the winning side," Zabini vocalised as he examined Ginny.

It took a great deal for Ginny not to retort in such a foul way as they were still among Slytherins.

"Oh, not for long," she eagerly challenged, "Slytherin's exhausted their best so early in the season, the Quidditch cup might as well be ours."

Zabini looked highly amused at Ginny's confident claim he genuinely smiled. "Well, I look forward to when that day comes. Until then, ciao."

He turned around before Ginny could counter and walked away. A composed Astoria took a brief moment to finally speak up.

"It was nice seeing you all. I look forward to that time as well," the girl daintily said before grabbing hold of Zabini's arm and disappearing into the crowd.

Ginny was speechless.

"I just realised that Zabini's not on the team this year. I wonder why?" Neville asked as they both watched the pretty couple leave out of sight.

Ginny, annoyed, harshly responded. "The hell should I know. Let's just go."

Neville found himself needing to catch up to the fiery girl as they both left the stands while the entire time Hermione stayed behind and remained in her seat. She stared blankly at the empty field as she couldn't get herself to move.

"Hermione, are you coming?"

Luna sat herself down right next to Hermione as she asked. She had long since taken off her eagle hat, holding it gently within her arms, close to her chest as if it were a prized possession. Upon closer inspection, two eggs had magically appeared inside the makeshift nest on top of the hat. This prompted Hermione to wonder about the bizarre scene.

"It's best to take shelter now before the rainstorm hits," said the Ravenclaw who stared eminently at the grey clouds above.

"I just need some fresh air. You go on ahead and I'll catch up to you later."

Luna turned to Hermione with a pleasant smile and nodded.

"Okay. Give Malfoy my congratulations for his victory before you leave. We would've won if it weren't for his unexpectedly superb Quidditch moves today. Oh well."

Hermione watched interestingly as Luna got up and blithely strolled away, gently cradling her eggs. The girl was far more intuitive than she thought as she functioned in highly mysterious ways.

Not one to dwell on Luna's staunch behaviour for too long, Hermione sighed one last sigh before deciding it was about time she rejoined her friends. The pitch had emptied at an alarming rate and she didn't want to be the last one out.

But as she got up from her spot, Hermione had failed to notice some Slytherin girls who lingered behind to catch her alone. They quickly surrounded Hermione and blocked her from leaving.

"Why are _you_ here?" A blonde sixth year vehemently asked.

"Potter's little _witch_ thought she could sit with us, make kissy faces at _our_ boys and think we wouldn't notice?" Another followed up.

"Yeah, who do you think you are?" said a third girl.

Hermione was shoved back down onto her seat with at least four different girls crowding her. She instinctively reached for her wand sticking out of her jean pocket but was too slow. The blonde who led the group immediately pointed her wand at Hermione's chin, effectively stopping her from retaliating.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, but then again who'd want to be? You're a fucking nobody," spoke another girl behind the lead who reminded her so much of Pansy Parkinson, "just a stupid mudblood cunt who should have died in the war."

Her words and their laughter pierced her like a needle through her heart. She should be used to the vile insults but girls could get so nasty, it stung.

Without the use of her wand to protect herself, Hermione grew hopeless.

"I don't want to cause any trouble."

The girls laughed again in unison.

"Should have thought of that before you came here," the blonde said as she reached for Hermione's collar with her free hand and pulled.

The girl was abnormally strong that Hermione struggled to breathe and balance herself against her grip.

"Don't let us catch you near Slytherin again," she threatened before pushing Hermione so hard, she fell in between the bleachers.

The girls all giggled and spat at how pathetic she looked before walking away, leaving Hermione all alone in the stands. A light drizzle started pouring from the sky as she slowly picked herself up but by the time the heavy downpour came, she couldn't bring herself to leave.

She sat in the same spot and held herself as water ceremoniously streamed down her face. Flashbacks of an equally terrifying witch kept reappearing in her head to laugh and scream at her, calling her a filthy mudblood. Hermione covered her ears and cradled her head in an attempt to block out the awful noise but nothing seemed to work. The echoes of her past grew louder and louder. Visions of the woman and the monster from her dreams grew vivid. It taunted her to no end, she felt as though she was going to lose herself.

She nearly reached a mental peak until a soft sound broke through all of the noise muddling her mind. She almost didn't detect it at first but when her own name sprung up again, her train of dreadful thoughts ceased to persist.

"Hermione."

The voice called to her. She slowly looked up, turned her head and found a drenched Malfoy in casual clothing holding onto his duffle bag.

His hair clung to his forehead as he stood there, staring at her with a look of concern gracing his sharp features. She immediately got up to look anywhere but him and held back from answering his call.

"What are you still doing here?" he asked.

When Hermione didn't respond, Malfoy dropped his bag on the floor and made his way over to her. She tried with all her might to look less pitiful than she already did and desperately wiped the water away from her face with her sleeve.

She finally managed to pull some words together in an effort to compose herself and spoke. "H-how did you know I was still here?"

The crack of thunder startled her to the point she nearly collided with Malfoy, though his fast reflexes held her steady in place.

Hermione didn't realise how close Malfoy was to her until she could no longer feel the rain patter against her clothes and looked up to see a transparent bluish light shoot out from the tip of his wand, creating the shape of an umbrella that shielded both of them from the heavy rain.

"I overheard some girls," his tone was courteous, "so I immediately came over to see if it were true."

With his free hand, he reached out to her cheek and softly wiped away the tears that fell from the corner of her eye with his thumb. Her breath hitched as he delicately cradled both her cheeks with his hands but her heart jolted when he did the unthinkable and leaned in to kiss her eyelid that closed on contact, then her soft rosy cheek and lastly her taut jaw, effectively pecking away her trail of tears.

She could no longer breathe regularly.

"They've hurt you."

Hermione nodded, obediently responding to his silk like voice.

"I should've come sooner," he said before his wet lips pressed softly against hers.

Hermione could not fathom the situation but indulged in it. Nearly all of her worries seemed to have washed away in the rain, her once downtrodden heart filled with utter bliss.

She closed her eyes in an attempt to absorb the feeling of his gentle sweet lips inviting her into his tantalising form and ached when he pulled away.

Her slightly parted lips, hooded eyes and curled up hands against his chest yearned for more. She wanted more, she needed more. What was holding him back?

Hermione managed a faint whisper as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Malfoy, please...Take me away from here."

Without a moment's hesitation, Malfoy wrapped his arm around her waist and combed his fingers through her tangled wet hair for closure and kissed her hard on the mouth like there was no tomorrow.

* * *

 _AN: Ciao — Italian for greeting or parting: hello; goodbye; so long; see you later._


	17. Chapter Seventeen

The cool rain continued to soak the two bodies embraced in the stands above the Quidditch pitch.

Hermione's arms slowly made their way up and around Malfoy's neck to close any distance between them while his own hands secured her smaller frame into him.

Their lips separated for a moment in time to catch the wondrous feeling they got when they looked into each other's eyes and smiled against their foreheads. A feeling so far out, the only thing that broke their peace of mind was the loud clap of thunder startling them both.

Hermione, as an involuntary reaction, quickly buried her face into the crook of Malfoy's neck from sudden fright.

She could feel him chuckle against her hair before whispering in her ear to calm her down.

"Let's get out of this rain."

She nodded against him and reluctantly pulled herself away from his secure hold. She watched patiently as Malfoy picked his fallen wand off the floorboards and slide it into his front pocket before making his way over to his almost forgotten duffle bag. He casually slung the strap over his shoulder before turning to Hermione, offering her his hand.

She stared at him for a brief moment, recalling the time she first took it. His face then was far different from what it was now, soft and patiently waiting for her to respond and under different circumstances. Never in a million years did she think the day would come when Malfoy would court her.

"Shall we go?"

Drenched in water without a care in the world, Hermione didn't think twice and took his hand.

She watched him intently as he led the way down the stairs, out of the pitch and toward the Quidditch Gate. When the rain grew too heavy, the two took refuge under the gate to spell themselves dry before heading out again.

Malfoy was just about finished charming his bag dry when suddenly he looked up and quickly pointed his wand in Hermione's direction, completely catching her off guard.

She froze.

"Homenum revelio," uttered Malfoy and a brush of air swooped past her.

Hermione cautiously turned to where he aimed his spell and was relieved to find no one. She turned back to Malfoy with a questioning look.

"Felt like someone was watching us from over there," he explained.

That was when reality hit her harder than she would have liked. Hermione still needed some time to process what just occurred between the two of them and really wasn't in the mood to see anyone else at the moment. Their relationship was already perplexing enough, Hermione didn't think she'd be able to handle the possible scrutiny she'd receive if others found out about them.

Her anxiety was starting to get to the better of her until Malfoy came over and gently cradled her cheek in his hand to calm her down again.

"It'll be all right."

He used his other hand to move a strand out of her face to see her clearer. Hermione found herself at peace once more by his soothing voice and sensual touch it was beginning to feel intoxicating.

She closed her eyes and kissed his palm before deciding it was about time they head back to the castle or else their secret would be exposed sooner rather than later. He agreed and the two gradually made their way back, fingers intertwined until they could no longer be seen with one another.

* * *

Hermione sat absentmindedly on her bed as Ginny informed her about the different types of techniques she would be using with her team for the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff match coming up soon. She had tons of notes and strategic layouts set on top of Hermione's bedspread and spoke on and on about the different forms to the older witch's disinterest.

"Due to Slytherin's Hawkshead attacks, Hufflepuff would anticipate that sort of future play, so I'm trying to figure out if a discrete formation loop would be better or..."

Hermione could not focus for the life of her. All she could think about was how to tell the feisty girl about Malfoy and what they did. She knew Ginny would freak out, one, because it was Malfoy and, two, for not letting her know sooner. It was quite a decision to make, to say the least.

Hermione didn't ponder too long on the subject as she was startled by a tug at her ankle. Ginny gave her a questioning glare but before Hermione could explain herself, Parvati unexpectedly walked into the room with a probing look.

"Hermione, some boy asked to speak with you in the common room," said the girl with a hint of annoyance.

Hermione looked at Ginny then Parvati before deciding it was best to go see who she was referring to rather than ask who it was.

When she cleared the stairway, Hermione was surprised to see Walter Jones wait anxiously by the fireplace but lighten up once she approached him.

"Hey—" she only managed to say before he cut her off.

"I know who hexed me and Lachlan," Jones urgently proclaimed.

Hermione looked around then reached out to the younger boy and motioned him to sit down and lower his voice, not wanting to draw unwanted attention.

"Are you sure?" Hermione didn't really know how to approach the subject herself as it had become the least of her worries up until now.

"Yes, well, sorta. Let me explain," the boy lowered his voice and composed himself before speaking again, "I was out by the courtyard playing gobstones with some friends, cause why not, haven't done that in a while, and not even ten minutes into the game a group of Slytherins showed up."

Hermione's stomach lurched slightly at the sound of where this story was heading and braced herself to listen to the rest.

"They didn't mess with us at first, but I guess we were in their way so they started to pick on us, call us names, the usual taunting. It wasn't until one of them bumped into me that I started having weird images pop into my head."

Hermione had to ask. "What kind of images? What did you see?"

The boy looked at her with an uncertain gleam in his eye.

"Blonde hair? Everything else is kind of a blur but I swear I remember seeing a blonde head."

Hermione soundlessly inhaled the heavy air forming around her, not knowing how to absorb such detail. She was having a hard time processing everything these days.

"Now are you positive that that is what you saw?"

Walter paused for a moment as if he was searching his memory again before looking back up at her. "Yeah, I think so."

All Hermione could think about now were the number of times she's passed students in the halls sporting blonde hair and to be frank, there were many, so it was way too early to call on a primary suspect.

"Well, it seems like your memories are slowly returning to you. The spell mustn't have been strongly cast as I previously thought. I'll have to speak with Baird to see if he too is recovering. Thank you for the information Jones, you've helped immensely."

As Hermione was about to leave the boy, he called her one last time.

"When a Slytherin bumped into me, it must have been what triggered the images. That can't be a coincidence, can it?"

Hermione paused and gave Walter a look of equal uncertainty.

"I don't know."

* * *

Dusk rapidly fell as Hermione and Ginny finished their routine detention in the trophy room. The girls were dishevelled and sweating from cleaning two shelves full of trophies using no magic. To add to their exhaustion, both thought it better to finish quick rather than slack and spend the entire night there.

"Finally we're done," Ginny exclaimed in the middle of stretching, "can't wait to unwind in a bath, my joints are killing me!"

"Me too. Can't wait to snuggle into bed and—"

Hermione cut herself off to look at the time on the wall. Ginny's brow rose as Hermione suddenly went quiet.

"What is it?"

"I forgot I was scheduled to patrol tonight," Hermione explained as she quickly packed her things, "I'm late to meet up with the Head Girl."

Ginny looked sympathetic and took the rags away from Hermione to help ease her.

"Do you want me to bring you a change of clothes and leave them in the prefect's bathroom for when you're done?" Ginny suggested.

"Do you mind?"

"No, not at all. I'll have it there before curfew, promise."

"Thank you."

And with that, the girls parted from the trophy room and headed to their designated locations.

In time, Hermione finally met up with the Head Girl who stood reasonably impatient in front of the Great Hall. Surprisingly, Hermione's partner wasn't already there.

"You're late," said Melinda Bobbin, looking down at her watch.

"Sorry, I was caught up in a personal matter."

She couldn't tell the Head Girl she'd just finished detention, that would be foolish.

"Looks like you're not the only one."

Without missing a beat, Malfoy showed up behind Hermione with his hands in his pockets looking quite relaxed.

"Did I miss anything?" He asked with a solemn look.

He glanced at Hermione to acknowledge her presence.

"No, you were both late," Melinda began, "which I cannot tolerate. Unfortunately, I don't have time to reiterate protocol to prefects who should already know what needs to be done. So here are your locations to patrol and get on with it."

Melinda was very serious when it came to being Head Girl which Hermione respected quite a lot. She would have been the same if she were appointed the position but alas fate had its own course.

Once the girl handed them their patrolling guides, she promptly left the two to their own devices and nothing more was said by her.

"Shall we start then?" Malfoy insisted after scanning over his guide.

For a second, Hermione forgot that Malfoy was the one who would be patrolling with her and immediately grew bashful. Her heart began to pound fast in her chest while a tingling sensation began to run its course through her body. Why was she so nervous to be around him all of a sudden?

"Yeah, okay. Er- where should we start?" Hermione asked as she frantically looked at her guide with barely any focus.

When he didn't answer right away, Hermione cautiously turned her gaze toward him to see what was wrong. She found him standing right next to her, shoulder to shoulder, peering down at her guide. Her pulse increased tenfold.

"We could start with the same corridors and end the patrol by ourselves, up to you."

Hermione found herself staring up at Malfoy almost disregarding his words.

"Yeah, sure, we could do that. Let's do that," she hurriedly agreed before turning away to start her patrol.

"Wait."

And in an instant, she stopped.

Malfoy caught up with her and leaned down to her level to speak. "You got some dirt on your nose."

It took her about five seconds to realise that what he was saying was the result of her cleaning the trophy room all evening. She quickly turned her head away to wipe the speck of dirt off her nose with her sleeve, leaving her furiously flushed. How embarrassing.

When she turned back, Malfoy was staring at her with utmost curiosity. However, not one word escaped his mouth asking her what had happened as they continued onward.

"Don't you want to know how it got there?" Hermione genuinely inquired.

"I have a couple of guesses," he countered.

"Let's hear them then."

"You sure? Don't want to offend you or anything."

"They're offensive?" Hermione paused in her tracks but donned playful eyes.

"Depends," he said as he gave her a little nudge on the shoulder.

She folded her arms over her chest and twitched her nose as she considered what he was saying. "Well, there's really only one way to find out."

He smiled in agreement but before he could spill his thoughts, he suddenly extended his arm over to stop Hermione from walking any further. She was taken slightly aback by the action but grew more inquisitive by his gaze.

Around the corner were a group of students, all from different houses excluding Slytherin, huddled together. It didn't take a genius to know that the group was up to no good as they all snickered about, having no sense of their surroundings or time.

Hermione squinted her eyes to get a better look at the students. "Fifth years? Maybe fourth."

"Only one way to find out," he said as he stepped aside and walked over to the unsuspecting group.

Hermione scurried along to catch up with her partner. They managed to stop a few feet behind the group without their notice as they were all too preoccupied with one another.

"Ahem," Hermione interrupted before the group could disperse.

All froze from the sound of her voice but quickly sprinted away before Hermione could address them again. This caught her off guard but she wasn't slow to react. Immediately she pulled out her wand and pointed it in their general direction and chanted. "Immobulus!"

Instantly, the five students were immobilised.

"Good job," Malfoy praised.

"Thanks, you're not too bad yourself," she teased.

The pair walked over to the group to get a better look at them.

"Would one of you care to explain why you're not in your dorm right now?" Hermione asked releasing everyone from the charm after she aligned them all together.

"You don't have to tell her anything, she can't dock points from us," a Ravenclaw girl said.

"Speak for yourself," a Gryffindor boy countered.

"Look, it's not what it looks like," spoke the other girl who was in Hufflepuff.

"What _is_ this suppose to look like?" Another Gryffindor boy asked.

"It _looks_ like you're all planning to break curfew," Malfoy pitched in, "which means detention is in order."

"Please don't give us detention," begged the last boy who was also in Hufflepuff, "it's a Friday night and we were only trying to have a little fun."

Hermione could practically feel their naivety and almost sympathised with their efforts to stay out. They reminded her of young Hermione, Harry, and Ron and understood the excitement of being out late.

When Hermione turned to Malfoy to reconsider the punishment, she could already tell that he knew what went through her mind.

She perked a brow in silent suggestion.

Malfoy shook his head before turning to address the group again.

"Fine, no detention. But if we catch you out late again, you'll have a year's worth," he warned.

All of their faces lit up in relief. They nodded vigorously and were told to apologise before heading back to their respective dorms.

"Shouldn't have gone easy on them," Malfoy spoke up as the pair continued onward to inspect the halls and classrooms for any more stragglers.

"They're young," Hermione explained, "and the school year just started."

"More the reason," argued Malfoy.

After checking in on one of the charms classrooms she turned to face him directly.

"You mean to tell me you've never broken curfew before?"

It was a rhetorical question of course. Malfoy still faked considering how to answer.

"I never got caught is all I'm saying."

"Silly me, how could I forget," Hermione's tone made Malfoy immediately regret his words, "you weren't caught ratting us out that one time our first year or anything, goodness no."

Hermione placed a hand over her chest in mock bewilderment. She couldn't help but giggle from how ridiculous she sounded.

"Fine," Malfoy raked his fingers through his hair, "I never broke curfew _purposefully_."

"You're really pushing it."

Her chest felt light and fluttery.

"I really am."

A warm feeling blossomed in her chest and she smiled. His daring eyes and mischievous grin melted her. The urge to reach out to him overcame her and the two found themselves slipping into a dark alcove. Without warning, Hermione was pushed up against the wall, hands beside her head. His knee found a spot in between her thighs and she moaned from the rough contact.

Heavy breathing followed as they stared at each with glass eyes but both made no move to start once a distant groaning emanated down the hall.

Her eyes moved to the main hallway in search of the eerie sound and lo and behold, found a couple of ghosts floating on by. Usually, she would have ignored their presence as they were such a common sight. Her stare lingered this time around, however, as she didn't recognise the pair. Their modern appearance alarmed her and that was when she realised who they were.

Hermione pressed her head against the wall behind her and closed her eyes clearly distraught. Her excitement deteriorated in seconds as the thought of new Hogwarts ghosts upset her.

Malfoy could feel her discomfort and gently let her off the wall when the coast was clear.

"I could patrol the rest of the castle by myself if you want," one of his hands remained intertwined with hers in the dark, "figured you'd like to utilise the prefect's bathroom before bed."

She managed a smile at his kind offer before realising what he said last.

"How did you know?" She never mentioned wanting to use the bathroom to him before.

"Bumped into Weasley," spoke Malfoy as if that explained everything.

She stared at him dubiously but gave in to her need to relax.

"All right, Malfoy. If you insist," she teased one last time before reaching up on her tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek.

A rare surprised look appeared on Malfoy's face before it gradually turned smug.

"Night," whispered Hermione.

And the two finally let go and left the alcove.

It wasn't long until she came upon the prefect's bathroom and was relieved to find the place unoccupied. Down by the large pool sized bath were her clothes neatly folded on top of a long bench and a small note written in Ginny's handwriting telling her to enjoy. She waited for this moment and now needed it more than ever.

Hermione eagerly opened the faucets to her liking and stripped down in anticipation.

Slowly, she dipped her foot into the warm colourful water and marvelled at the sensation before submerging herself completely. She swam a couple of laps before breaking the bubbly surface to rest her head against the tub's edge, sighing in relief.

She was finally relaxed.

Or so she thought.

"That was quite an attractive sound you made there," a startling voice said from the doorway, "care if I join you?"

* * *

 _AN: Not really sure if guides are a thing for prefects, but who cares._


	18. Chapter Eighteen

"Bloody hell!" Hermione yelled before instinctively lowering herself into the water, cautiously turning to her intruder, "What are you doing here? The door's charmed shut, there's no way you could've—"

"I've got some spells up my sleeve too now Granger, you're not the only bright wizard here at Hogwarts," said an all too arrogant Theodore Nott.

As he approached the bath, Hermione sunk lower and closer to the pool's edge to cover herself up as much as possible.

"Also I'm Quidditch captain, I have rights to this room as much as you do."

"When it isn't already occupied!" She bobbed her head up only to yell at him.

"Oh loosen up. I won't bite."

"Then can you please leave?" She gritted, riled from his intrusion.

"Tempted, just cause you said please," he now stood at least five feet away, hands burrowed in his pockets with no intention to leave, "but I figured, why waste more water when we could just share a bath, hm?"

Hermione flushed pink from embarrassment.

Nott grinned broadly.

"Nott, I'm warning you. Leave now!"

"Or what? You'll hex me?" He began to walk toward the bench, "can't do that without a wand now can you."

Fear struck Hermione stone cold. Among her pile of clothes lay her wand, perfectly unattended and out of reach. All sense of security immediately drained from her system as she watched him carefully pick her wand up to examine.

Her gut instincts told her to get out of there fast.

"Nice wood you've got here."

She could hear him utter to himself as she cautiously looked around for any possible ways to escape while he wasn't looking.

Unfortunately for her, he noticed and in an instant pulled out his own wand and pointed it at her. Before she could process what was happening, a white light had shot out and flew toward her at high speed.

Hermione didn't have enough time to escape underwater and could barely brace for impact. A cool brush of air hit her directly in the face and immediately washed over her entire body. Expecting the worse, she clenched her eyes shut and waited for the spell to take effect, but oddly enough, she felt no different.

Slowly she opened her eyes to look down upon herself for any abnormalities and found none. Her ability to move her limbs freely was not deterred. She was at a lost.

"What did you do?"

Nott leisurely walked over to her, twirling her wand in his other hand like a baton and crouched down to speak at her level.

"This will be our little secret."

Her breathing hitched and she felt nauseous.

"You see, I just made sure that if you ever and I mean with all your might, try to tell anyone about this meeting, you simply can't. Leave it to dark magic to give you the most useful spells."

Her eyes grew wide like prey trapped at a dead end. What in the world was he talking about?

"Relax, I'm really not going to hurt you... yet." He dangerously pointed his wand at her, "I just want to talk."

"About what?" She managed without quivering.

He unexpectedly put away his wand, pushed the bridge of his frames closer to his eyes, and stood up straight to clarify.

"Seems to me, you and Draco have been getting along quite well these days," he gave her a questioning stare, "should I suspect that something is going on between the two of you?"

A flashback of the two of them in front of the Quidditch gate crossed her mind and she began to dread the possibility that Nott found out about their relationship.

Ultimately, she chose to feign ignorance of his statement and answered him. "No. Why are you so concerned?"

It felt like an eternity when he didn't reply to her straight away and just stood there staring.

"Jealousy I suppose."

His tone was strangely sombre.

"I know what you're thinking. It's such a silly thing to brood over. To have any sort of relationship with you is damnable as you're no pureblood. Why even bother with you?" he swept his eyes over her body and sneered.

Hermione crossed her arms underwater feeling extremely vulnerable. She was naked for Merlin's sake with no wand while a psychopath clearly had the upper hand. She tried with all her might not to panic but it evidently showed on her face.

"Honestly, I'm really not that scary. Here, you could even have your wand back."

He bent down again to hand it over to her and she hesitantly took it. Once Hermione had a firm grasp on her wand, she immediately pointed it directly at his chest.

He didn't flinch.

"Oh, I forgot to mention, the curse pits the victim powerless against the caster, meaning they can't harm them in any way unless it's lifted. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? After all, its cousin is the _Imperious Curse_."

It took a while for her to process what he was saying but when she did, gripped her wand tighter to stop herself from shaking too much.

"Go on, try it. I promise you, it won't work."

Hermione didn't waste any time and tried to stupefy the bastard but to no avail. Not a single word came out of her mouth. Her mind couldn't wrap around the spell and she couldn't concentrate on any other spells that would prove useful against him. It was as if he was untouchable.

Naturally, she panicked.

"Now don't get upset. It'll all go away just as soon as I figure you out. Until then, you will tell no one of this encounter."

"Why are you doing this?" She whispered as she lowered her wand in defeat.

He paused for a moment to consider her question thoughtfully, placing his fingers under his chin as an added gesture.

"You're different," he said matter of factly before walking over to the bench again, "after all that you've been through, you somehow managed to come back here and for what reason? You put up this facade that you're tough and a brave Gryffindor but really, you're just a scared, pathetic girl who tries to fool herself into thinking she's above everyone else."

Hermione still could not understand why he chose to taunt her to this extent. In a sense, she couldn't deny what he was saying, but for someone as abhorrent as Nott to figure out some of her insecurities showed just how weak she felt.

He picked up a towel folded neatly from a clean pile and hung it upon his forearm before walking back over to her.

He spoke again with deep austerity. "I want to break you."

All of the air escaped her lungs as she stared into his sullen eyes. An emptiness started to form in the pit of her stomach as she couldn't fathom his hatred for her.

"Why?"

Then suddenly, Malfoy's words about Nott rung clearly in her ears.

 _He's very tactical when it comes to having everything go his way._

She realised his vindictiveness finally exposed itself.

She knew his type. He liked to play games, games that made sure he was always in control, of the settings and the players. She was forced to become a player and he wanted her to lose but for what purpose?

"Here you go, love," he said ignoring her as he offered her the towel.

Hermione couldn't even look at Nott and just stood in the water with no intention to move as he leered down at her. But as his hand reached further out to offer her the towel, all she could think about was her escape and reached up to take it. In doing so, she grabbed his wrist with her other hand, catching him off guard, and managed to yank him down into the water. With this window of opportunity, she quickly climbed out of the bath and wrapped herself up in the cloth before he could break the surface. Quickly, she gathered her clothes on the bench and decided she'd rather run to her dorm in nothing but a towel than spend another minute with Nott.

But just as she reached the entrance, she heard him call out to her. "Granger!"

She paused right before she could open the door and turned to face him seemingly against her own will. She could see him run his hand over his face as he stood in the pool, drenched in soapy water. When he came to, he procured a menacing smile that chilled her to the bone.

"You can't escape me."

And with that, she turned around and promptly left.

Hermione didn't care whether or not she was caught running around the halls at night, she needed to be far away from him as much as possible and hoped to Merlin he wasn't following her.

As she came around a corner, she collided with someone whom she began to struggle against out of paranoia.

"Granger, it's me."

Malfoy's voice stilled her.

"What happened, are you all right?" He asked worryingly as the sight of her in disarray certainly startled him.

Hermione took a couple of deep breaths before she could muster a single word about what happened. However, nothing came to mind.

"Hermione?" Malfoy had taken off his school robe to wrap around her shoulders, modestly covering her.

She clutched the front tightly to herself and relaxed in the warmth of the drape. The ability to speak gradually came back to her.

"I thought I could make it to the tower without getting caught," she found herself smiling a bit from the silly notion.

It was like she was in a haze of some sort that clogged up her mind.

"Barely dressed?"

She could tell he had many questions but she could not for the life of her reveal her true reasoning.

"I got spooked. That's all," she explained, failing to tell him what really happened.

Malfoy looked at her sceptically but as her mind wandered to the ghosts they saw before, he immediately understood where she was coming from.

"Let's get you to bed," he said lastly before wrapping his arm around her shoulders to guide her into another direction towards her dorm.

Hermione subconsciously pushed against his side to embrace the tender feeling Malfoy emitted. Even though she couldn't outright tell him about her encounter, she felt safe in his arms and followed him as he led the way.

* * *

 _In the midst of the dark night, Hermione jerked from an aching startle. Arms and legs bound together, she hazily opened her eyes to the dark canopy above her._

 _Hermione knew immediately where she was and started to panic. Sharp solid objects ground against her back as she was being dragged against her will through the dense forest. By whom, she did not know. But as she tilted her chin forward, the black outline of the creature hauling her body by her ankles, across the forest floor, grew clear and it was extremely unnerving._

 _She wriggled around to escape the inevitable capture but only managed to harm herself some more by the rough foliage scraping against her backside. She tried screaming to get anybody's attention but it was futile. The creature would not stop for anything and the small flicker of hope inside her slowly started to extinguish._

 _That was when she could feel the wet ground beneath her start to envelop her body in a cold substance, reaching her knees and then to her torso, eventually outlining her head._

 _Hermione started screaming some more as she realised the creature's intent was to drown her in whatever body of water they happened upon. Her efforts to stay afloat grew meaningless and before she knew it, she was completely submerged underwater._

 _Unable to use her arms and legs to properly swim upward, she began to lose her breath in the murky shallows of the water._

Hermione woke abruptly, gasping for air in her small four-poster bed. Such a vivid nightmare had her panting and bathed in her own cold sweat. Why does this keep happening to her?

Tiredly, she pulled away her bed curtains to find no one else in the dorm, only her lonesome self and her full phial of sleeping draught untouched.

That's one reason.

She peered over at the clock hung above the doorway that read half past noon and sighed. Everyone was out including Ginny who had no reason to wake her since she had known Hermione had a long night. The girl was allowing her to sleep in for the weekend which was a kind sentiment but uncalled for.

Sitting upright in bed, Hermione was shocked to find a robe draped over her form. She picked the article of clothing up to examine and it exuded a rich smell and fine tailoring. She turned it on its front and gently touched the Slytherin house emblem on the chest and smiled. She had almost forgotten Malfoy had given her his robe last night and inwardly thanked him.

The situation wasn't ideally romantic but she was grateful nonetheless.

The thoughts of last night suddenly overcame her mind. Memories of Nott ambushing her in the prefects' bathroom gave her a repugnant feeling in her stomach and she was tempted to stay in her dorm all day if it meant avoiding him. However, that was no way to be productive nor was it Gryffindor-like behaviour to be scared, so she decided it was best she got out of bed to do some investigative work, a much-needed distraction.

It was the perfect opportunity to find Lachlan Baird and question him if he too started to remember what had happened that fateful day. If Walter had managed to remember something important, then surely he did too.

Within the hour, Hermione got dressed and ate her lunch. Afterwards, she thought of all the possible places the young Hufflepuff would be and figured it wouldn't hurt to check the quad.

She assumed correctly when she made it to the courtyard and found him talking with Walter Jones and a group of their friends. She wasn't sure on how to approach the boy without making too much of a commotion but she couldn't think of a better time to catch him alone than now.

Considering the situation, she'd rather have fewer people know of their conversations rather than that of many who were bound to find out if she chose to find him through word of mouth.

Still contemplating on the matter, Hermione hadn't noticed that Lachlan had already spotted her out and tugged on Walter's sleeve to approach her.

Their callings caught her off guard. "Hermione!"

She jumped a bit by the loud and sudden cry of her name but she composed herself and greeted them kindly.

"Hey Jones, Baird."

"Please, call me Walter."

"And I, Lachlan," grinned the Hufflepuff.

"Okay," Hermione faintly smiled back, "Lachlan, may I speak with you for a moment, alone."

Walter gave her a knowing look before patting Lachlan's shoulder.

"I'll be over there," he said pointing at their group of friends before nodding to Hermione and leaving the two of them alone.

The bubbly Hufflepuff beamed brightly at Hermione and offered her to sit on a stone bannister that outlined the courtyard. She took up the spot next to him before he could ask her for the reason of their conversation.

"I spoke with Walter and he's told me some very important information regarding the incident," she started.

"Did he? Does he remember who's done it?" he asked as he looked over at Walter.

His reaction meant he was oblivious about his friend, which was perfect in a sense there would be no misconstruction among the only two supposed witnesses.

"Not quite, but he's been able to recall some details and I just have to ask, has this happened to you?"

Lachlan stared wide-eyed and turned his gaze toward the ground contemplating on if he could remember anything. A loud "aha!" startled her as he eagerly turned her way to answer.

"Now that you mention it, I've been seeing weird images flash in my brain from time to time though I'm not sure if the two tall figures that I'm seeing are the details you want."

Hermione's pulse started to race by his description. Tall figures couldn't have been a coincidence but they weren't unlikely either. After all, Malfoy was the one who found the two in their awful states and Nott just happened to be around at the time.

The timing played a huge role.

"No that's helpful news. Do you think you can describe these figures to me? Any further details about them that stand out?"

"Jings, I'll try."

As Lachlan started to describe the figures he could barely remember, Hermione caught a glimpse of familiar platinum blonde walking through the halls of the courtyard from afar.

She could see Malfoy leisurely walk alongside Zabini, in conversation with one another. Her pulse instinctively raced but it instantly dropped when another familiar face appeared behind them.

Nott walked up to the two and placed his arms around both their shoulders as if they were all good mates, casually joining in on their talk. The two didn't seem to mind and they continued on until Nott, with his exceptionally perceptive eye, caught Hermione's gaze and smirked.

Hermione, without giving Lachlan any warning, promptly got up from her spot, turned around and left. She could hear him call out to her in confusion but she ignored his calls as she could no longer be in the vicinity. She rushed down the hall with no particular destination in mind though as long as she was far from Nott, she'd feel safer.

In her frantic getaway, Hermione found herself at the entrance of the boathouse and decided to enter the structure. The place was empty of life, apart from the seagulls that hung by the docks, but other than that she was alone. She didn't anticipate, however, the company she'd receive in a matter of seconds.

"It was Nott, wasn't it?" A voice asked from behind her.

She swiftly turned around to face the only other person she could tolerate at the moment. His voice was low yet cautious as not to aggravate her while his stormy eyes pierced hers with thoughtful inquiry.

She smiled helplessly.

* * *

 _AN: The spell Theodore casts is made up for this story and isn't actually canon to my knowledge. If it is, then cool. Other than that, I don't know the actual incantation so let's just pretend it exists for the sake of this story._


	19. Chapter Nineteen

_AN: Rated Mature for a reason_

* * *

"Could've sworn I saw him come through here," Nott said, his voice loud enough for Hermione to hear through the window.

She was forced inside a small crevice behind a tool cabinet by Malfoy the moment he saw that Zabini and Nott had followed him.

"You sure he's not in there?" asked Nott, sounding a bit suspicious.

"Yeah, I've checked, no one's here," Zabini's deep voice resounded at the entrance of the boathouse.

Malfoy's right hand was pressed against the wall beside her head, while his other gripped her wrist at her side. He was trying hard not to squish her in the small corner as his legs were tangled in between hers. His face was turned to the side, jaw constricted, avoiding eye contact while trying to listen to the two boys speak.

Hermione gulped from nervousness.

"Why would Draco run off so suddenly?" Nott inquired with a tone all too familiar to her, she involuntarily shuddered.

Malfoy noticed.

"He has his reasons. It's probably best not to meddle with them," Zabini said deadpan.

There was a weird silence that lasted for a couple seconds before Nott decided to speak again.

"Yeah, I get it," she could hear him say as he approached the wall, a little too close for comfort, "care for a fag?"

Hermione's eyes widened as she could hear a box of cigarettes being shaken around. Nott didn't just smoke any wizard pipe, he smoked _muggle_ cigarettes.

"I'm fine," was Zabini's response.

Smoking, of course, was prohibited on school grounds. If caught, a student's privileges could be revoked or worse if the enforcer thought it appropriate. The idea of the repugnant boy getting suspended from school delighted Hermione more than she could care to admit. However, his chances of getting caught so far out at the boathouse were slim. She could only hope.

"Y'know, these aren't so bad. Who knew muggles could make such addictive contraptions?"

The smoke Nott puffed out was slowly seeping through the window above her and Malfoy. Hermione scrunched her nose in reaction to the foul smell it produced.

"Sounds like them to create such filth," Zabini spoke obviously repulsed by the smell as well, "I highly doubt they're even healthy."

Although cavalier in nature, he did have a point.

"Oh, but your highness, it's not about one's health that makes it so attractive," he paused to smoke his cigarette, "it's about the recreational experience."

Zabini, with a surprisingly calm tone, responded. "Do not patronise me, Nott."

Naturally, the boy answered back. "Sorry mate, bit of a habit."

Hermione had never heard Nott apologise before. It was weird and felt alien to her ears. The prospect that the boy could actually feel an ounce of empathy made her shiver.

"Strange," suddenly the thought of them being found out made Hermione panic, "you don't find muggle practices repulsive anymore," Zabini vocalised.

She exhaled in relief causing Malfoy to glance her way.

Nott didn't answer Zabini right away but eventually spoke.

"I've seen what strong prejudices have done to my family, I know better."

There was another weird silence before Nott began again.

"And you? Where does your loyalty lie now?"

Hermione didn't like to eavesdrop on peoples' personal conversations, especially if she didn't like the topic at hand, but being pinned up and hidden against the wall by Slytherins didn't exactly give her much leeway to leave.

"I could care less," Zabini ultimately stated.

His response made Nott cough in amused scepticism.

"But I'll hold everyone to the same regard they have for me, including you, Nott."

Made sense considering Zabini was a very apathetic being.

"C'mon now, we're mates. You're supposed to have a higher opinion of me," Nott brightly replied in an effort to sway the boy in his favour.

"With your crude antics, it's hard to."

Hermione could hear a stomp followed by the sound of a shoe rubbing against the ground. Nott must've extinguished his cigarette.

"My dear Blaise, you've gone soft. What happened to the arrogant chaser I've gotten to know and love?"

"He's got priorities now," Zabini responded flatly.

"Oh, and do they also involve a little Miss Greengrass?"

Hermione could feel Malfoy's hand grip tighter on her wrist. It wasn't much but enough to notice and wonder.

"Y'know, she's a hard catch. Has a face of an angel with a body to die for. Reckon you're the lucky chap who finally gets to know what she's like in—"

"I think I see Draco," Blaise interrupted before Nott could finish his thought.

Within seconds the sound of their voices faded into the distance.

Even though the situation had dissolved, Hermione's breathing was still unstable. Malfoy still had her up against the wall and wasn't leaving anytime soon with Nott and Zabini still prowling around.

"Malfoy," she managed to breathe quietly.

His eyes were still averted. She tried to get him to look at her but he wouldn't. Instead, he gripped both her wrists and lowered his forehead onto her shoulder. She was surprised by the sudden weight of his head.

"Malfoy—"'

"Can we stay like this for a while?" he breathed against the small area of exposed skin near her neck as he turned in her direction.

Her pulse raced. They've been close before but never this intimate.

"Okay," was all she could muster.

Basking in the reticence of the boathouse, Hermione wondered if Malfoy could hear her heart beat erratically.

"Granger," she didn't expect he'd answer, "what happened?"

Her mind began to reel. The cloud that began to form in her head spread to the far corners of her brain and she couldn't quite formulate a direct answer to his question.

"You'll have to be more specific," Hermione joked.

She'd like to think he was smiling at her lame attempt to distract him but she knew better.

"You were running away from him, weren't you?"

She focused her gaze on the boats hung up on the wall opposite from where they stood. The thought of taking one to the water and sailing away enticed her.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she calmly lied.

There was another silence between the two before Malfoy spoke again.

"I think you do," Malfoy sternly said as he lifted his head up to make eye contact with her at an even level.

Her plight was evident on her face.

"I..." she tried to explain but her mouth physically could not move in time to what she really wanted to say.

"What did he do?" he asked backing away to look at her with great concern.

Think.

"I can't say," she muttered, eyes averted.

She could feel his hands slip away from her, a cold feeling she did not like at all.

"You can't or you won't."

Her gaze darted back to Malfoy, slightly offended that she was expected to tell him everything.

 _Think._

"Maybe it's none of your concern."

Why tell Malfoy anything? It was her own problem, he didn't need to poke and prod at her as if she needed saving. She could take care of herself.

"Granger, I didn't come here to bicker. You're clearly upset about something and I want to help," Malfoy said with honesty.

Her fingers found the points of her elbows and cradled them. Her only comfort was within herself and Malfoy only served as a pretty distraction.

"I'm fine," Hermione reassured.

Either way, she didn't want to involve him. He was an entity that felt far more whole than she was and Hermione didn't want to break that.

She decided it was best to keep him out of the loop and in the dark for his own sake.

"Please stop giving me those eyes," she said with a playful undertone, hoping he'd drop the subject altogether.

She had to lift her chin up to look at Malfoy squarely in the face as she stepped to him, a sudden surge of excitement engulfing her.

Pretty distractions were advantageous, she thought, as she impulsively wound her arms up and around his neck.

"What are you doing?" he asked as she softly kissed his throat.

Suddenly it was like a whole new Hermione arose, audacious and provocative, peeling from her shell to take the lead. She was demanding and wanted nothing more than to flee from her thoughts.

"I just— need to escape," she replied in between kisses, "will you help me?"

She didn't think he'd let her get away with this obvious act of diversion but was taken aback, quite literally, when he picked her up and pinned her against the wall, again.

Hermione gasped from the impact and continued to sigh from the assault of his lips on her neck. She smiled while she cradled his head in her arms realising he must have read her mind, hands wrestling with his hair in heated urgency.

Immediate sparks travelled down her spine while a tickling sensation bundled up in the pit of her stomach. Her excitement only escalated as his skilful mouth made its way to her ear, his aroma captivating her senses. Hermione was beginning to forget how she even started the day, a feat she was striving for until Malfoy stopped his baiting motions.

"What are you playing at Granger?" he asked in a tone almost feral she shivered in response.

Her own lips latched onto his earlobe, nipping and kissing to ignore his resistance. She wanted him to stop talking and needed him to do something, anything to get her mind off of reality.

Malfoy growled and pushed his lower torso further into her in return. This battle between their bodies sparked lying embers with all sensibility and reservation thrown completely out of the window.

Reaching for her wrists once more, Malfoy aggressively pulled them together in one swift motion above her head, restricting her tender advances down his chest.

Her body almost caved to him at the sound of his voice. "Answer me."

The once silver hues stared at her with cloudy lust.

Hermione bit her bottom lip in frustration and stared back with wanton fervour. She'd refuse to answer unless he give her what she wanted and what she wanted right now was for him to kiss her into oblivion.

"If that's how you'll play," noting her silence, his free hand stroked her cheek before making its way down the length of her side, "so be it."

When he reached the hem of her skirt, he stopped to see if she'd object but her glazed over stare egged him on.

Hermione's breath hitched as his scorched hand slipped underneath to grip at her upper thigh.

She gasped, wide-eyed, at the sudden contact. Malfoy never was this bold before, but neither was she.

They were both treading on very thin ice.

His fingers began to massage the soft area between her thighs causing her to tighten her legs together, trapping his hand in response. The friction that was created felt incredible and made him chuckle against her temple.

"You shouldn't tease," he whispered.

The heat unfurling at her core pressed her tighter together. As long as he continued to make her feel curious things, she'd be anything he'd want her to be.

"Why's that?" She managed with a breathy voice.

Challenging, though it still lacked a solid front.

Hermione could see Malfoy smile devilishly as he pulled back to look at her, pleased and provoked at the same time. The glint in his eyes knew something she did not and before she could question it, his fingers had already slipped around her leg to grab the round flesh of her bottom underneath her knickers, drawing her close.

Hermione's head reactively threw backwards, eyes closed, knee lifted and back arched in full response to the charged pulses his touch created. Her audible gasp only solidified his absolute control over the situation.

"Look at me," he ordered as he tightened his hold and pulled her closer to him.

Under hooded lids, she watched his face remain focused on hers while his nails sunk deeper into her skin, inducing pain yet pleasure. She was far more needy than ashamed to be touched in such a way.

"You can tell me anything, Granger," his lips found her throat and he hummed, "in return, I'll give you anything, anything you want."

Her mouth formed an o from his trailing kisses and scraping fingers against her bum. His voice was liquid in her ears and she was practically parched.

"Draco— please," pleaded Hermione, yearning for him to keep moving.

But his mouth stopped drawing on her skin and his eyes took over instead. Slowly, but surely, did Malfoy comprehend what had just been said.

"What?"

Hermione, realising her mistake tugged at her wrists and gave him a magnetic stare. For the longest, she had refrained from speaking his name aloud and to herself for fear that he was becoming more than just an acquaintance or even a friend.

But as days went by and their antagonism had grown into dark affection, the rising possibility of her ever speaking his name had grown pressing.

She couldn't hold back anymore.

"Let go of me."

It was a plea for her to unleash herself onto him, as animalistic as it sounded, she didn't want him to stop all because she spoke his silly name.

"I'm afraid I can't do that," Malfoy taunted, "not unless you say it again."

He wanted her to beg for him. How cunning.

"It's not that easy," she stated to deflect from the principles and get straight to the point.

Why did he have to be so meticulous?

A wicked smirk resulted from her fuming.

"Really? Cause just a second ago you practically screamed my name."

Hermione tugged at her wrists with a lot more force but remarkably would not budge. She underestimated Malfoy's iron grip.

" _Screaming_ is an exagger— oh."

Malfoy's fingers were grazing dangerously against her backside and it felt wickedly lewd.

"What was that?" he asked with an impish grin and leaned in close to hear her speak.

Hermione squirmed from the rising tension she was feeling between her thighs and bit her lip to suppress any noise that would instantly satisfy him. She didn't want to appear too easily swayed, but as someone who rarely participated in these lascivious acts, it was hard not to.

"I—" he loosened his grip and started to drag his hand back to her thigh, "said that screaming— was an exaggeration."

Her voice was far from steady.

"What would you have called it then? An accidental stammer of my name? Falter, I suppose? Or maybe just a _whimper_?"

Her eyes fluttered closed and she whimpered on command as he breathed his words low into her ear. The hand caressing her thigh had smoothly opened her legs apart and travelled over her quivering core.

Hermione didn't care how much of a front she had lost to Malfoy anymore, as long as he continued to detract her mind by any means necessary, she'd do all his bidding.

"Will you sing for me, Hermione?"

His hand stroked the front of her knickers with tentative pressure, she was certain he could feel how wet and aroused she had become.

"Yes..." she hissed.

"Yes, what?"

He stopped rubbing her which prompted another carnal response from Hermione, her lower body seeking more contact.

"Please Draco—"

And before she knew it, his fingers had slipped into her knickers and delved right into her innermost lips.

Soaked and teeming, he slid his forefinger in with great ease and slowly pulled back, eliciting a gratifying cry. Her tied hands were in desperate need to speed up the process as he painstakingly followed a dawdling rhythm to keep her on the edge but never over.

How fiendish of him.

A second finger had her bucking to meet his hand with fire but he wouldn't give into her intense desires. He instead kept at a steady pace that had her throbbing in her spot. All she could do was match her thrusts with his motions and dance her appetite until it peaked to her satisfaction. But even then did he deny her of a release as he slowly slipped his fingers out from her core to watch her squirm from his touch.

She almost screamed in frustration but muffled her cries with a bite to her lower lip. Her eyes were glassy with water as she stared into the storm.

How breathtaking were his eyes, she mused. What she'd give for them to ruin her as she was, a bundle of fluttering nerves.

"You're so sweet," said Malfoy as his slender digits touched his lips.

He couldn't have possibly meant physically as she could smell the musk wafting in the air as he caressed her cheek after.

She flinched from how crude his actions were but the vulgarity of it all only enticed Hermione more. It was true madness.

"Please Draco," she begged, "I _need_ this."

Her cheeks were flush pink and her lips red from clamping down on them too hard. The lust in her eyes and the music in her voice beckoned him.

He was all she craved, all she ever really wanted and needed him to lower his hand.

Finally did his fingers make their way back down to her heat again, masterfully shifting through the dark curls of her mound and stroking that one button that made her quake.

His lips, arrogantly risque, found hers against in the midst of passion and kissed her long and hard.

The culmination of his scent, taste and touch were enough to rip her apart and break their kiss as she whimpered his name over and over like a prayer.

Draco was all she could remember, all she could sense.

Riding out the waves of euphoria, Hermione's body shuddered against him and collapsed. He had already released her from his titan hold and was quick to grab her by the hips to keep her from stumbling forward. Her poise embraced in his arms until she could finally calm down and meet his silver stare with renewed energy.

"You look radiant," whispered Draco as he tucked a strand of hair away from her eyes.

She didn't have much time to respond as a loud noise echoed from the opposite side of the entrance of the boathouse averting both their gazes.

The heavy lock used to close the large wooden doors from the outside swung unlatched, cryptically indicating someone's presence.

Draco removed his wand from his back pocket and cast the human revealing spell to find no one in the immediate area.

"Someone saw us?" Hermione frightfully asked after she was given some time to straighten herself out.

Draco didn't answer and only furrowed his brows in equal worry.

Who was it?

Hermione immediately felt dread befall her as she stared out into the lake, the sun falling behind the tall trees that outlined the Forbidden forest.

Whoever it was, knew about them now.

What luck.


	20. Chapter Twenty

Monday morning came quickly as Sunday night had left, during which, Hermione had not seen or talked with Draco since their encounter in the boathouse.

The distance was a precaution to prevent from further exposing themselves, though as time went on, there had been little to no mentions of Hermione and Draco floating around school.

Whoever had seen the two together was keeping it to themselves and Hermione hoped it stayed that way. In the meantime, she had a lot of investigating to do, with the assault, her letter threatening bully and their peeping Tom.

Caught up in so much in such a short amount of time, Hermione had at least anticipated hearing back from Draco. Instead, she was disappointedly informed by letter, late Sunday night, on the current status of their situation.

In neatly scrawled handwriting on expensive parchment paper, Draco's letter had read:

 _I'm sorry._  
 _DM_

Nothing more.

No explanation on why he was apologising and nothing on what was to become of them now.

Naturally, Hermione brimmed with mortification. All this time she had foolishly fell for his false allure and only had herself to blame. The consequences were clear-cut. She should have known better.

But why did her heart ache so?

She continued to sulk with defilement thinking of the letter as she walked alongside Ginny on their way to potions. The younger witch noticed her aggrieved expression and asked Hermione if she was feeling all right.

"Not really," was her reply, agitated by the realisation that Malfoy may have played her from the start.

"You'll be fine," Ginny responded immediately, "because you're not leaving me alone with these Slytherins, no way."

As the girl pulled on the older witch's arm, Hermione toughened her gut and entered the room despite her nervousness of facing Malfoy.

The two sluggishly made their way into the dimly lit dungeon to their already filled table with Zabini standing alone right beside it.

Malfoy was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Malfoy?" asked Ginny nonchalantly.

"Bed rest."

"He's not feeling well?" Hermione asked a little too inquisitive. Luckily no one noticed.

Zabini nodded.

"Forehead's a little warm and an entire ICU from St Mungo's is called in to tell him to stay in bed."

Ginny made sure to show her disdain for his absence.

"We'll carry on without him," Zabini flatly stated and began to arrange the instruments to accommodate the smaller group.

The girl was unusually complicit and the three began their work.

Hermione was surprised to learn that Malfoy would be the one to bail. How much of a coward was he to face her?

As time flew by, the three were able to rotate their workload, which wasn't much since the liquid luck was set aside to boil for a couple of weeks.

Hermione was assigned to cut the ingredients and help scale everything while the other two did their parts efficiently with no problem. Ginny's attitude toward Zabini was fine at first until she made an off-handed comment about how Hermione was cutting some knotgrass.

"Careful Hermione, you wouldn't want your blood sucked again by Mr Vampire here," Ginny warned as she mashed ingredients inside her mortar.

"Don't worry," Zabini said as he carefully measured his ingredients, "I have a preference for pure blood."

His jab touched a nerve.

But before Ginny could burst into rage, Hermione cut her off, "Worry not, the both of you, because I'm done with my cuts."

A furious Ginny wouldn't be good for the team as they were almost done their latest assignment. Hermione had to defuse the fiery witch before anything could go awry and it worked the moment she prompted the wizard. "Need help with those nettle leaves, Zabini?"

"I'm fine here Granger, thanks."

It was not a sincere thank you as one would hope but it was progress.

"So, er- Zabini, what made you decide to take N.E.W.T. level potions?"

She knew her extraneous question sounded highly suspect when both Zabini and Ginny stopped to stare at her.

His usual mean smoulder turned apprehensive at first but as his gaze veered toward Ginny's, he smirked and surprisingly answered. "Slughorn recommended the course, said it would be of good use for me and my future endeavours."

Sounded reasonable enough except for the fact that Zabini stuck out like a sore thumb when it came to participating in something as academically rigorous as Advanced N.E.W.T. level Potions. He had an athletic track with old money to boot so why would he consider the course as helping to advance his career when he had it already made for him? He could even try for a modelling contract in both the wizarding _and_ muggle world with or without an upbringing like his. What use would potions have for him? It begged the question of why he decided to come back to Hogwarts. What exactly did he want to do after graduation?

Hermione knew she shouldn't be making outward assumptions about him as not everyone moulded into their perceived archetypes but she couldn't help but speculate at least.

"Why do you ask?" His low voice snapped Hermione back into reality.

"You don't seem like a classroom type," Ginny replied for her.

"I could say the same for you," he said in return.

Hermione noted that Zabini, quite possibly held Ginny to the same standard as him.

Possibly.

"What about you? Why did you choose to take this course, Weasley? I already know why Granger takes it."

"Same as you I suppose," the redhead answered as she finished her portions, "Slughorn insisted."

She didn't look at him as she walked over to his side to measure her ingredients with exact measurements.

Zabini just stared at the witch as she worked, moving out of her way as she sprinkled her portions into the cauldron.

The smell of roses wafted around Hermione's nose, not from the cauldron itself but from Ginny making her way around to Hermione's side.

Then did the older witch catch Zabini's deep eyes fixate on the girl's blazing mane. He was staring at her meaningfully and immediately recognised the look.

Hermione could recall seeing it three times in her life. It was quiet and unnoticeable but once caught, it was all one could think about. The first was from a young, sallow-skinned Viktor Krum with eyes dark as coal. His brooding build only amplified the startling yet electrifying effect it created and it made her feel nostalgic.

Second, came from a tall freckled-faced Ron Weasley with eyes gleaming like the day sky. The contrast from his red coloured crown exuded warmth and comfort, she nearly missed its imperfect balance.

Lastly, for the third time in her life, she saw the look from a pointed jaw, sharp-nosed Draco Malfoy with eyes cold as ice. His enigmatically dark aura captivated and held her down to earth, a feeling she wanted to indulge in forever.

It was that one stare that prodded her senses and ignited the fun-filled romance of her teenage years and if overlooked, could be mistaken as friendly eyes. Dare she assume what she had seen and experienced for herself, Blaise Zabini was smitten with Ginny Weasley.

Hermione needed some time to process such undeniable advent but was distracted by Professor Slughorn who came over to poke his nose into the group's work and see how they were doing.

She dropped her gaze from Zabini.

"How are my star-studded students?" He jovially asked, glancing between the three of them.

"Excellent."

Zabini finally looked away at the girl as he answered the professor with his same monotone voice. He had a knack for hiding his true feelings.

"Wonderful. I expected much. You lot have been outstanding in all of your assignments it's no surprise," Slughorn made sure to speak up so that the other students could hear, possibly for motivational reasons though Hermione knew it gave the opposite effect of admiration toward their group by their peers.

"You deserve a little fun here and there so as a reminder, I look forward to seeing you all at the dinner party, yeah? All party information should be on the invitations I sent you."

Ginny and Zabini nodded in response, leaving Hermione alone with no answer.

"Did you not receive the letter I had given to Mr Nott to give to you my dear?"

Hermione did indeed remember receiving the letter but then declining it immediately. She chose to lie her way out of going to the party instead.

"I have not," she clearly enunciated, "but I probably won't be able to make it anyways. It conflicts with my patrol schedule."

"Nonsense! I urge you to attend. Why I've got an extra invite right here," Slughorn proceeded to take out an envelope from the inside of his robe and give it to her, "I'll even make sure to speak to the heads to change your schedule so that you can come."

Outwitted by the exuberant wizard, Hermione reluctantly took the invitation in hand and thanked the professor for his offer. The amused faces of both Ginny and Zabini annoyed her to a slight degree but all in all, she probably deserved it.

"It would be in your best interest to attend," Slughorn hinted before waving his wand at his desk.

A parchment scroll and an envelope lifted off of the desk and floated its way over to Slughorn's hand.

"Would you be kind to give this to Mr Malfoy for me? It's the makeup assignment and his invite. Having the entire group attend is only fair."

He handed the scroll and letter over to Zabini and the boy took it without question.

Slughorn bade a farewell to the group leaving Hermione a little worried.

* * *

"I think this belongs to you," Neville said as he handed an envelope over to Hermione and sat down beside her at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall.

He had picked it up off of the floor where it laid untouched behind her.

"Secret admirer?" Ginny teased across from her.

Hermione's stomach sank as she recognised the penmanship belonging to the person who had threatened her earlier with the note to stay away from Slytherin. Not wanting to alarm anyone, she stowed it away under the table and onto her lap.

"It's just Slughorn's invitation. I must have dropped it."

The younger witch didn't seem to suspect a thing and greeted Neville with some delicious meat pie. Hermione covertly cast revealment charms onto the letter to detect if it were laced or jinxed because she could never forget the nasty hate mail she had received in her fourth year.

When nothing seemed to be amiss, Hermione slowly ripped open the envelope. Out popped a single slip of parchment with writing that reads:

 _I saw you at the boathouse_.

Dread immediately scoured her system and left her discordant with her surroundings. Although shocked, Hermione's first instinct was to look around the Great Hall to find the owner of the cursed letter.

Her eyes gravitated over to the Slytherin table and found, to her surmise, Nott staring back at her.

There was no smirk nor notion on his face that screamed he was the one, but the blank stare terrified her into thinking so.

Like clockwork, she stood up from her seat, startling Ginny and Neville, and took off, shouting an excuse for finishing up her homework at the library over her shoulder.

She needed to be alone and far from where Nott could see her. He was the last person she wanted to have caught her at the boathouse on that fateful day and flushed pink in equal amounts of embarrassment, frustration and anger.

Before she could make it down the empty corridor, however, fate made sure she couldn't leave so easily.

"Granger, where are you going?"

Hermione instantly stopped in her tracks the moment she heard his disdainful voice call to her.

It didn't take long for Nott to make his way over to where she was frozen still and turned away from him. When he was at arm's length to Hermione, he addressed her again.

"I asked, _where are you going_?"

Hermione hesitantly turned to face him, overriding the urges to run away. She couldn't believe how weak she's gotten.

"To the library," she quietly replied.

The corner of his lips curled upward, pleased to hear her speak.

"I knew you were a bookworm but I didn't think it was this bad."

"What do you want?" It was best to keep this exchange short. After all, they were only a few meters away from everyone else in the Great Hall.

"Why do you always assume I want something from you whenever we speak?"

His inquiry only made her irritable.

"Can't we just talk like normal classmates?"

"Okay then, what do you want to talk about?"

She knew better than to think he just wanted to socialise. He definitely wanted something from her. Maybe an admittance to being with Malfoy on Saturday. Who knew?

Her shoulders tightened just thinking about it.

"You seem anxious," said Nott as he watched her.

"I'm not," she cut him off before he could make an obvious joke out of her response, "I just want to get some work done."

He nodded, seemingly buying her excuse and remained silent. There was an odd expression on his face making him hard to read. The atmosphere was surprisingly less awkward and she was confused on whether she could leave.

"That reminds me," he spoke up finally, "I have some work I want you to help me revise."

There was the Nott she knew.

"I'm not doing your homework."

She received a light chuckle from him.

"Not schoolwork," she raised a questioning brow, "I need you to look over my CV. I'm applying to work as a Hit Wizard after I graduate."

Baffled couldn't begin to explain how unexpected his request was. Hit Wizards were regulated under the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Knowing Nott, he was far from being morally capable of joining.

"Why do you look so surprised?"

He wasn't angry, just curious by the way her facial expression contorted to this revelation.

"I... wasn't expecting this," she reasoned.

"Typical you," he spoke as if she was beneath him, "but never mind that, I want my résumé to be top-notch. Who better to ask than the great Hermione Granger for some help?"

Hearing Nott say her full name for the first time felt like some slimy creature had slithered down her spine. It wasn't threatening, surprisingly, but wrong to hear.

"What if I don't want to help you?" she daringly asked, standing straight and looking him dead in the eyes.

He leaned his head down just a bit, glasses flashing from the flicker of the torches propped up against the walls, to meet her eye to eye. He became menacing in a matter of seconds.

"I don't think you can refuse."

His usual jaunty voice fell dark. Humourless and inexplicable, Nott made sure to express how serious he was about this job.

She hated how he was right.

"Fine, I'll look at it."

Hermione held out her hand ready to retrieve the article in question but was interjected by a new proposition.

"You know, recommendations from outside divisions don't hurt my chances."

Her eyes scanned his for further clarification. He instead straightened his stance and donned a smile indicating he was back to being the usual taunting Slytherin.

Then it struck her. He wasn't just asking for help on revising his résumé. He was also asking her to put in good word for him, not from her alone, but by someone she knew was already in the department. Someone who had a much more powerful voice than hers or anyone else's combined.

He wanted her to ask Harry to recommend Nott for the job.

"No, absolutely not. I'll look over your CV but that's all I could do."

"I'm not asking you to do this."

He was telling her.

Nott took a step forward effectively pushing her back. His domineering behaviour was sure to force her to give in.

"He's still training, he can't possibly put in a good word for you," she was starting to sound weaker and weaker by the moment.

It was atypical of her to back down but Hermione was sure it was one of the effects of the curse he cast on her.

As she continued to step further backwards in trying to escape this impending hold on her, Nott swiftly reached for her wrist and yanked her toward him. His figure almost encapsulating her form.

"I-I don't think Harry would even agree to this. Especially since you have no relationship with him whatsoever," Hermione regretfully stammered.

"You'll just have to write him a convincing enough letter to recommend me, it's not hard."

His grip tightened to hurt her but she's experienced worse. Physically she could withstand Nott but mentally, she was being drained out.

"He'll be suspicious," she said as her last plea to leave Harry out of this.

"Convince him or else, Granger."

Nott had enough against Hermione to extort and make her comply. With the curse, it was nearly impossible for her to escape. And with what happened at the boathouse, he may, possibly, have more against Hermione than she would have prefered.

Hermione begged him with innocent eyes so he wouldn't make her do this. It wasn't right and she absolutely could not agree to it.

But his austere face would not change, not as she implored him so and in the end silently accepted his task. She nodded to show she would comply, resulting in him smiling at her.

"Glad you'll cooperate," said Nott as he used his other hand to softly pet the side of her head. She reactively flinched at the contact but did not pull away.

Being so close to Nott generated strange amounts of heat due to their proximity but hopefully nothing else. It didn't help her case either when he suddenly pressed his lips against her hair above her ear and whispered, "I'm watching you closely, love."

Suddenly, a boisterous clamour erupted from the entrance of the Great Hall. It signified the end of dinner and the end of Nott's manipulation as he released her from his hold and turned around to face the hall.

Her mind was reeling but losing the distance between them had her thinking properly again.

"Nott, wait."

Hearing her call, Nott turned around.

"When do you need the CV by?"

Students were walking down the halls in every direction. She felt more safe with their presence even when they didn't seem to notice the exchange happening between the two.

"A month from now," Nott called back, "is that enough time?"

She didn't want to have to yell over the noise but Nott wasn't making any move to go near her and neither was she.

"I'd like to meet up with you to discuss the contents."

Hermione was serious.

The look in Nott's astounded face quickly shifted to intrigue. She honestly expected he'd question her motives but instead received an approving nod to meet up before he had to turn in his application.

Nott waved her off and disappear into the crowd of students.

When Hermione was sure he was no longer within the vicinity, she audibly exhaled and began to pant, overwhelmed. Her heart was pounding but she had managed to appear as complicit as she possibly could.

She was going to get close to Nott and figure out a way to break the curse.

* * *

 _AN: FYI, Nott is the antagonist of the story, so clearly he has to behave in such a foul way. It's up to Hermione, the protagonist, to stop him ofc._


	21. Chapter Twenty One

_Hermione opened her eyes to a dark and empty space, seemingly floating in mid air. Everything felt in slow motion and she couldn't tell which way she was orientated. Looking at her sides, it was clear to see that she was in the middle of a vast barren void that was cold to the touch. Her existence minuscule in comparison._

 _It wasn't until she turned her head upward did she remember where she was, spotting the blurry outlines of the dark trees and their branches reaching out to her from above. They provided no escape, just false hope and she tried with great effort to swim to them._

 _But no matter what she did or how hard she tried, her body remained stationed in the murky waters where she was dragged under._

 _Hermione yelled or rather opened her mouth in frustration, not caring if she'd drown. Her lungs didn't fill up, fortunately, but she continued to float aimlessly in place._

 _Why was she cursed to remain in such frigid waters?_

 _In time, a light glow started to radiate from beneath Hermione. She quickly tried to adjust herself to face downward, finding new hope in her endless struggle._

 _But as she began to move, unforeseen aquatic life, long and wiry, wrapped themselves around her wrists, ankles and neck to prevent her from swimming._

 _Hermione struggled to move her limbs but she managed to grasp the tangles around her throat to stop it from suffocating her. She wasn't giving up without a fight and quickly ripped as much of the cursed plants away from her as possible._

 _But the more frantic she became, the more forceful the possessed weeds grew and wrapped tighter around her screaming body, inhibiting her senses._

Hermione's eyes flew wide open the moment darkness befell on her. She was panting heavily in her bed, lying limp on her side with her hands clenched tight to her chest.

Another night facing another horrid dream. When was it ever going to end?

Tiredly, Hermione drew her bed curtain to the side to check the time and was surprised to find it was still too early in the morning to be awake. The room was still sheathed in darkness with the light sighs of her roommates sleeping peacefully in accompaniment.

She wanted to rest some more before class but she couldn't find a comfortable enough position.

Lying back on her side, she noticed a small piece of fabric sticking out from underneath her pillow and pulled on it to reveal a neatly folded Slytherin robe. She had almost forgotten Malfoy had given it to her after the bathroom incident.

The look in his eyes then spoke genuine concern for her and yet, their present situation now spoke distance.

Was he ignoring her?

Hermione held the robe close to her chest, ruminating about why Malfoy would possibly want to ignore her. She was completely wide awake and couldn't possibly fall back to sleep with him on her mind.

When it finally reached six o'clock, she quickly sat up, grabbed the robe and decided it was about time she mailed her response to his letter.

Later that morning, Hermione sat alone for breakfast in the Great Hall. Every once in a while she'd look to the entrance for Malfoy, patiently waiting to see if he'd come down for breakfast.

She figured if he saw her, he'd want to speak with her and apologise in person. It was wishful thinking but practical and so she sat quietly sipping her coffee in the meantime.

It wasn't until the owls starting flying in did Hermione finally see Malfoy make his way over to the Slytherin table. She watched as he took his seat after grabbing one of the adorn kettles of tea and helped himself to the drink.

Not once did he look up from his breakfast. Her constant glaring garnered no response. It was quite troubling.

Suddenly, the owl she had used from the owlery earlier that morning came flying down to land in front of Malfoy. In its claws, the animal held a parcel with a letter attached to it in twine. The boy at first looked somewhat startled as it wasn't his usual eagle owl but accepted his gift anyways.

Hermione watched as he carefully took the package from the creature before it flew away. Malfoy was in no hurry to open his present but eventually did so and found his robe inside. He delicately sliced open the letter with his wand shortly after and read its contents addressed to him from her.

Hermione was expecting Malfoy to look up after he was finished as she had written her desire to talk. However, he did not and slowly put the letter back into its envelope and moved the parcel onto the seat beside him. Again, she failed to catch his eye and grew angry at his unresponsiveness.

Every moment they shared together, every touch, every kiss was all just an act.

It certainly seemed that once Malfoy had won her over, he had no reason to continue their fake relationship and decided to throw her to the curb as if she wasn't a human being with a heart.

Why did she even bother?

Hermione knew she should've never trusted him and couldn't believe she fell for his stupid charm. Fuming with outrage, she got up from her seat and swiftly left her table regretting she ever befriended Draco Malfoy.

She, unfortunately, did not see his eventual gaze follow her out of the hall.

* * *

"Morning Zabini," Hermione greeted, preparing the tools on their shared table in potions.

Zabini looked from an equally intrigued Malfoy to her and responded back. "Morning."

"If you don't mind, I'd like to work with you today as I've already paired up with Ginny."

Today she was assigned to work with Malfoy, but because of their recent fallout, wanted to avoid him at all costs.

"All right."

Luckily the boy didn't mind as he didn't particularly care about partner assignments. On the other hand, Ginny was rather relieved not to be working with Zabini and happily gathered her things to meet with Malfoy who had not once bothered her since the start of the school year.

After Hermione was finished situating herself furthest from Malfoy, she began heavily smashing her ingredients into her mortar with little precision. Usually she would have operated in a more cautiously effective way, however, due to her terrible mood, could have cared less.

Each pound produced a heavy sound and slight tremble of the table. Zabini immediately noticed the tension build around Hermione and raised a hand to stop her from further pulverising their rich ingredients.

"How about you calm down a bit, yeah?"

"How about you leave me alone and let me do my job?" Hermione snapped.

Zabini wasn't confrontational and let her seethe in her own fury before finding the right opportunity to address her again when she was calmed down.

"Does _this_ possibly have anything to do with Draco?"

Right away, Hermione stopped her pounding to look up at Zabini, surprised he knew.

"Why do you say that?"

She sounded a little too defensive.

"Well you wanted to switch partners last minute," said Zabini as he carefully sliced the small amounts of dittany given to each group, "and your reaction just now makes it quite obvious."

"My aversion to him shouldn't be a suprise," Hermione said trying to justify herself.

Zabini didn't respond straight away. He waited for her to stop after another round of beating their ingredients to a pulp. "I just find it interesting that _now_ you choose to act bitter when before you two seemed to be getting along well. So much so, you sat with Slytherin during the first quidditch match."

Hermione paused for a moment to consider what Zabini was saying.

"I thought that as well, but I guess I was too hopeful."

Hermione bet he didn't expect she'd admit to it and continued to smash her ingredients with less force. The task became tedious and she was exhausted at projecting her indignation. She wondered how Ginny could deal with such a vigorous way of coping and looked over at Zabini as he delicately trimmed the dittany.

The Slytherin didn't say much, but when he did speak, he spoke from observations and facts. She had to respect his sensibility and wanted to apologise for her behaviour earlier.

"I'm sorry," she said watching as he mechanically worked in his station, "I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. It's just... you have an awfully strange way of showing cordality towards people, did you know?"

Her voice brought him out of his work to look at her.

"I'm not trying to be friendly."

Hermione found herself smiling at him, sceptical at his clear attempt to distance himself from everyone else.

"I don't believe that. I think that's just how you express your compassion, Blaise."

He raised a fascinated eyebrow at the sound of his name being spoken aloud by her.

She was glad to admit to herself that not all Slytherin were conniving sleazeballs like Malfoy and Nott.

"Is this your way of avoiding whatever issue you have with yourself, overanalysing other people, Hermione?" He asked, no hint of irritation, just curiosity.

"That's who I am," she confirmed, not minding that he spoke her name as well, "I can only function when I critique a Slytherin."

A rare Zabini smile graced his elegant face marking the first time she and the boy ever had a meaningful conversation.

"I concur."

In time, the two were able to get back to their work with no more interruptions. Hermione had almost forgotten about why she was so angry in the first place.

It suddenly hit Hermione when she felt eyes stare harshly at her with a force that caused her to look up and catch Malfoy watching her as she worked.

His eyes were obscure almost menacing but she felt no threat. To anyone, he didn't look any different in appearance but Hermione could tell he was feeling some sort of way but couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was.

Her pulse began to race as he continued to stare and it wasn't until he finally looked away did her breathing steadied back to normal.

What was Malfoy thinking?

Wednesday afternoon, another day had past and Hermione found herself aimlessly wandering down the corridors to clear her mind. There were far more important matters to dwell over than a silly boy she almost laughed in amusement over how childish she behaved.

In the midst of her musing, Hermione failed to notice a certain Ravenclaw boy make his was down from the opposite side and bumped straight into Head Boy Ronan Davies.

"I'm so sorry!" Hermione exclaimed as she quickly helped to pick up some scrolls that had fallen to the floor when they made contact.

"I've got them," he insisted politely, bending down to retrieve the scrolls in her hands.

She wondered why the boy didn't just charm them to levitate beside him.

"It's a good thing you've bumped into me," said Davies.

A confused look graced Hermione's features as she attentively waited for him to adjust himself after all of his scrolls were back in his arms.

"Your schedule's been changed. You'll patrol tomorrow night rather than on Friday. Fine by you?"

"Yeah, of course. I'll report to you then."

Although reluctantly, she had to commend Slughorn's efforts in making her go to such an expendable party. It would've been a shame not to attend at this point.

"Good," Davies duly said before making his way around her then stopping, "you are going to Slughorn's dinner party, correct?"

She was a bit surprised by his question but nodded to answer him.

"Are you going with anyone?"

"No, no one in particular, why do you ask?"

She had a slight idea why.

"Well, if it isn't a bother, how would you like to go to the party with... me?"

Davies was not a particularly shy person. He was less rigid than she previously thought him to be and she didn't find his company bothersome. It wouldn't hurt her to attend as friends and so she politely agreed to go with him.

Davies smiled and bid Hermione a farewell until next time.

* * *

"Rumor has it you're going to the party with Head Boy Davies? Is this true?" Ginny asked as she strapped on her Quidditch gear.

The pungent smell emitting from the Gryffindor locker rooms was a mixture of leather, sweat and shower soaps of all kinds. It invaded Hermione's nose in a not so friendly manner but she wasn't too worried about that.

Another day had gone by marking the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff match. Hermione wanted to show her support for Ginny by being with her in the locker room as she prepared to play. The girl's anxiety before the game radiated off of her body but talking about things other than Quidditch seemed to comfort her.

"Are you mad at me?" Hermione replied, worried that the younger girl wouldn't approve of the "date" since she still hasn't told her of her break up with Ron.

"Why would I be mad? It's Ron you'll have to explain yourself to."

Ginny grew focused on polishing her broomstick to an unnecessary glean. I️t looked as if it would break off under her heavy hand and nearly hit Hermione in the midst of her reckless hold.

"It's not a big deal. We're accompanying each other as friends and nothing more."

Ginny finally looked up from cleaning her broomstick dry and stared at Hermione with intensity. For a split second, the older witch felt as if Ginny knew of Ron and her relationship, or lack thereof, before turning her head to the lockers and yelling at her team to come forward.

It seemed the girl was just too nervous to be thinking about anything clearly and had somewhat dismissed Hermione to talk with her team.

Hermione didn't mind as she knew the girl was under a lot of pressure at the moment and stood back as she relayed strategies and encouraging words to her players.

The team yelled in unison once their captain was finished and headed out into the quidditch pitch where a huge roar greeted them.

Ginny was the only player left in the locker room stalling behind to address Hermione one last time before the game.

"After we win, I️ have a couple of dresses in my trunk you could pick from to wear for the party."

Hermione grinned at how multifaceted Ginny seemed to be in the moment and mouthed an "okay" to accept the girl's offer.

"Good luck out there," Hermione wished right before Ginny finally left the room and made her way out onto the pitch.

* * *

The Gryffindor common room was vibrant with crimson and gold coloured streamers and lights cascading down from the ceiling. Gryffindor had won the match against Hufflepuff and was now celebrating their win with an outlandish after party.

Ginny was in the middle of the crowd, dancing with her fellow teammates and peers in a drunken state while Hermione carefully watched over her from a corner of the room beside Neville.

She had no interest in ceremonialising the victory with cheers and dance but had applauded the team, especially Ginny, when they all made a toast earlier that day.

Later that evening, however, nearly every older student was in some sort of alcoholic stupor, conversing or grinding into each other around the bewitched room it was somewhat chaotic.

It had been a while since everyone had this much pride and excitement in the tower that Hermione couldn't stop them from enjoying their loud festivities.

"I️ have to patrol now, look after Ginny okay?" Hermione exclaimed into Neville's ear while trying to beat out the loud music.

Neville luckily heard and gave Hermione the "ok" before walking over to where Ginny was. The girl was trying to grab another cup of some kind of alcoholic beverage from a couple of mischief behaving boys which Neville was able to stop her from doing to their obvious dislike.

Hermione knew Neville would keep her safe but made sure to confund the boys messing with her right before leaving the common room area.

Once out of earshot from the boisterous tower, Hermione made her way down to the Great Hall to meet with her new partner and arrived to find a patiently waiting Head Boy.

Meeting half way, he greeted her kindly.

"You'll be partnered up with me for tonight."

Hermione nodded in compliance and retrieved the guide from his hand before making their way down the corridors.

The patrol started off a little awkward at first with no one speaking but as time went on, Davies had the courage to speak up.

"Y'know, I️ always respected you, Hermione. May I️ call you that?"

"Yeah, I️ don't mind," she blushed pink from the sudden compliment, "and thank you."

"The bravery you show and intelligence you share is admirable. I'm surprised you weren't sorted into Ravenclaw."

"Yeah?"

Hermione's heard similar statements said to her so many times before, it was nothing new.

"Have you decided what you wanted to do after graduation?" He asked as they made routine stops checking classrooms, stairways and smaller corridors.

Hermione paused contemplating on his sudden state of inquiry.

What did she want to do?

"No, I'm not entirely sure yet."

It scared her that she was uncertain of her future and she continued walking to avoid the subject.

"I️ have a suggestion if you'd like to hear?" When he saw her glance his way he continued, "I can already tell you'd do great working at the Ministry."

She paused, provoked by the thought, but continued onward trying not to engage.

"You'd make a bloody brilliant Minster of Magic. You're even more qualified than I am," echoed Davies as he tried to keep up with her.

Hermione stopped in her tracks, irritated by the suggestion. She would never work in the ministry where corruption and lack of policy reformation ran rampant.

"The ministry is out of the question," said Hermione with deep enmity at the slightest thought she'd work there.

"My apologies. I️ must have struck a nerve then?"

Hermione brushed his persistence off as ignorance and couldn't blame him for recommending the job.

"What about you? What do you want to do?" She asked, trying to divert attention from herself.

"Me? Well, I️ want to work at the Department of International Magical Cooperation. Hopefully, the early application process works in my favour."

Before he could further elaborate on his future endeavours, the two stumbled upon a mist of smoke leaking out of one of the classrooms. They could hear a couple of deep mumbles come from within the room and concluded there were students gathered inside.

"What is going on in here?" Davies loudly asked as he barged into the room.

Hermione quickly followed suit to provide support.

She was startled to find a group of Slytherin boys smoking cigarettes and possibly cannabis with Nott sitting among them.

"Smoking on school grounds is prohibited. Give those up and receive a 50 point reduction with detention, all of you."

The group went quiet at first at the Head Boy's sudden intrusion and then burst into laughter after hearing their punishment. The only person not laughing among the five deviant students was Nott, who was disturbingly eyeing Hermione.

Hermione's veins pulsated in fear. She subconsciously walked over to Davies' side as he readdressed the boys.

"This is a serious offence. State your names now or-"

"Or what Cuck Boy, you'll make us submit to the likes of you?"

It was Frances, the bully she supposedly got ejected from the Slytherin Quidditch team from earlier.

He held a piece in between his skeleton fingers and took one long drag before blowing the smoke into the Head Boy's face. Davies did not like that at all.

Before he could reprimand the boy, however, Nott had stepped in with his mere voice calling out to Frances to move aside. The lanky boy complied and moved out of the way, extinguishing the cigarette on the floor.

The Slytherin captain made his daunting way over to the two after extinguishing his own cigarette into a table top.

"Let's not overreact now," his smooth voice sounded shifty, "we could settle on an agreement of some sort, what do you say?"

Hermione carefully watched Nott's movements. The two were outnumbered and with Nott as the leader, everything could go awry.

"Sorry, that's not possible. Either you give those up and accept my punishment or I️ send you to the Headmistress."

The boys in the back all mocked astonished faces before erupting into another round of laughter.

Davies stood tall in the face of a burly Nott. The boy barely towered over anyone but his mere stance exuded authority. Hermione wished she could stand proudly by his side but the sight of Nott smiling in retaliation at Davies frightened her more.

"Ronan, it's okay," she finally said as Nott wouldn't stand down.

A surprised look appeared on the Head Boy's face as she spoke.

"Everyone has a first warning, we should let this incident go."

She didn't look at Nott's mischievous eyes but she could feel him grin criminally at her.

"But, Hermione- "

"Listen to Granger, she's reasonable," Nott replied.

Her word seemed to make all the difference and Davies complied. He backed off looking at Hermione as if she's lost her mind.

"In turn, you all leave for your dorms immediately," she warned for all to hear. The boys were rather stubborn and booed her but when Nott turned with a sharp look on his face, they quieted down.

One quick nod to the door had all four boys get up and leave.

Once they had left, Nott turned back to the Head Boy.

"It was nice speaking with you Davies, you have a good night now," he taunted as he brushed the Ravenclaw's shoulder and straightened his collar for him before leaving himself.

The moment the Slytherin was out of sight, Davies turned to Hermione. She expected him to give her a good lecture or worse, ask that her badge be revoked but received none of that.

Instead, she was given a grave statement.

"I️ don't like him. Not one bit."

She couldn't have agreed more.

Friday morning, Hermione woke up to a heavily hung over Ginny who she had to force to get up and take an antidote.

Luckily it worked like a charm but it didn't account for how out of it she felt.

As they were in potions, Zabini couldn't help but notice how tired the redhead looked.

"I'm not in the mood Zabini," Ginny exhaustingly said, leaning her chin against her palm.

"I️ could see that," he gleefully replied, "I️ just wanted to congratulate you on your win."

Hermione was too distracted to listen to the two continue on as she was partnered back with Malfoy. The two of them had remained quiet since the start of class and only spoke when it was absolutely necessary which was rare since they knew exactly what they were doing.

She'd sneak a couple of glances his way only to be let down by his obvious deterrence to her.

She didn't want to admit to it out loud, but it hurt deeply.

Unfortunately, Hermione didn't catch Malfoy's worried glance as Slughorn came over to speak with the group.

"See you all at the dinner party," he exclaimed happily before commenting on Ginny's unruly appearance.

It seemed Slughorn had something planned for them all and he just couldn't wait to hear how great everyone and their families were doing.

* * *

 _AN: Definitely more Draco to come. I just like to work up to it._


	22. Chapter Twenty Two

Hermione snapped out of her small reverie as her arm bumped into Ginny. She was distractingly wiping one of the large glass cabinets inside the trophy room that Friday evening and lost track of her task.

Ginny, who was quickly sweeping the floors with an old broom, didn't seem to notice and danced her way around Hermione's feet to finish faster.

In an hour or two, Slughorn's dinner party would begin and the younger witch wanted to finish their detention early to get ready for the occasion. Hermione, on the other hand, didn't care much for the event and languidly worked, unfazed by the other girl's persistence to finish up.

"Let's go, Hermione," Ginny called out as she quickly returned the broom back to the storage cupboard.

When Hermione didn't answer, a quick summoning charm for the cloth in the older witch's hand made her stop completely.

"All right," Hermione obliged and followed Ginny back to their dorm room.

Within the hour, Ginny had helped the older witch do her hair up and applied some light makeup on her before leaving early at Slughorn's request. She stated it was urgent and left Hermione to fasten up her own dress and accessorise herself for the party she did not want to go to.

Luckily though, Hermione didn't have to attend alone and finished her look on her own before making her way to the Great Hall to meet with her date.

Ronan Davies, dressed sharply in what appeared to be new robes, looked up from his watch and grinned the moment he heard the clicking of her heels approach him.

"You look amazing, especially in that colour," he complimented as he held out his elbow for her.

Hermione smiled a little and thanked him for the kind flattery. She was wearing a short but modest navy blue dress with long sleeves that coincidently matched his blue robes.

"Shall we?"

Hermione lightly nodded and the two of them headed straight for Slughorn's office.

Similar to the Christmas party the professor had held years before, the room's walls had been draped with crimson and silver hangings that created a familiar tent effect. The room was crowded and stuffy as they were all bathed in a dim red light cast by an ornate silver lamp dangling from the centre. No fairies were used this time around but the same mandolin accompaniment was reissued from a distant corner.

Fortunately, no elves were used to wait food around on silver platters either and instead students who may have volunteered, or were forced to as punishment, were dressed in service robes to attend to the guests' hungry needs with hors-d'oeuvres.

Hermione was impressed by the setup and mentally praised Slughorn's ability to host such a lavish party without the use of elves this time around.

As the two continued further into the room, more people, students and elderly that were invited, began to notice her. She grew bashful by all the staring and clung tighter to Ronan's arm.

"Look there," he suddenly said as he pointed to a gigantic cake placed in the far back of the room.

It was tilted upward for all to see and Hermione realised why Slughorn wanted her to attend the party so profoundly.

Written in grey frosting across the white cake was the word "victory".

She could only imagine what Slughorn had in store for her and cringed at the thought of his unnecessary attempt at celebrating the war's outcome.

"What perfect timing, the guest of honour has arrived everyone!"

All eyes in the room stared at Hermione and she couldn't have felt more out of place than she did at that moment. Her stomach sank in trepidation as she meekly smiled at everyone applauding her.

A flash of light sparked behind some of the students gathered in front of Hermione and it startled her to the point she found herself hiding behind the Head Boy. She wasn't expecting a photograph to be taken of her and took deep breaths, praying she would get through the night.

It was a good thing her date was the Head Boy as he was used to the attention and spoke on her behalf not wanting to engage in conversation with curious students that gathered around them.

"At this time, I'd like to ask you all to make a toast, not only to Miss Granger here but for everyone in this room who had courageously helped our cause in winning this war," Slughorn announced with an amplification charm placed against his throat.

Hermione could not concentrate for the life of her as the plump man continued rambling, all the while, inquisitive stares came flying her way. The large crowd of people, the gawking, the constant background chatter, all of it was berating her mind in ways that filled her veins with anxiety. She was immobilised in her spot, cowering behind Ronan, wishing for everyone to just go away.

It wasn't until she felt the pressure of his hand hovering against her hip and him whisper in her ear asking if she was all right did she resurface back to reality. It seemed Slughorn's speech was over and everyone else was speaking amongst themselves, no longer staring at her.

"Looking good you two," interrupted a melodic voice.

Ginny, in a beautiful green form-fitting dress, happily sauntered over with Neville and Luna by her side. Hermione could feel Ronan's hand slip away from her as the trio came over to the two and couldn't have been more elated to see them.

"Hey," she greeted before mentioning her date, "you guys know Ronan Davies, right?"

Neville greeted Ronan with a customary handshake while Luna politely nodded. Ginny grinned as Ronan tried his best not to stare at her too long when they shook hands.

"Sorry I had to leave you earlier Hermione. Slughorn wanted me to make sure everything was perfect before you arrived," the girl explained before mentioning the room's interior, "do you like it?"

Hermione was honoured but honestly felt it was a bit superfluous. "Yeah, it's not bad."

The girl nodded in return and had nothing else to say to the couple. In time, the group awkwardly came to a silence.

"You look scrumptious," Luna complimented Hermione, sensing the awkward atmosphere.

Ginny and Neville smiled in agreement while Ronan seemed a little addled by the unique remark.

Before Hermione could thank the odd girl, however, Luna had already reached out to Neville and pulled him away in the direction of the cake.

"Don't mind her, she's just hungry," explained Ginny.

Hermione smiled while Ronan looked on in confusion.

"So who are you here with, Weasley?" Ronan eventually inquired as he could see that Ginny was left alone.

It wouldn't surprise Hermione one bit if he tried to hit on the girl right in front of her. After all, Ginny was hotter than a phoenix reborn, Hermione would've been more surprised if he didn't.

"I came with a friend," Ginny playfully replied before a girl from her grade came over to drag her away to speak with some of the single boys in the room. "Enjoy the party, yeah?" she quickly called over her shoulder to which Ronan eagerly replied back for Hermione who smirked in amusement.

"You hungry?" Ronan asked seeing Hermione was in a better mood now that everyone was in their own bubbles.

"Yeah-"

"Hello Granger," said someone balkingly interrupting them from behind. They turned toward the diminutive voice and found it belonged to a serious looking Head Girl, Melinda Bobbin.

She was wearing a nice white-suited dress expressing her more classy style for the party.

"Hello," Hermione replied. She couldn't help but feel as though Bobbin came over to reprimand her but was rewarded with yet another awkward silence.

"Melinda," Ronan finally spoke.

His voice had a tone that addressed the Head Girl in a familiar sense which made her wonder if they had a history with one another.

Melinda verified that thought when she gave Ronan the cold shoulder and walked away as if he hadn't addressed her.

Intrigued by her sudden reaction, Hermione had to ask. "What was that about?"

Ronan didn't answer immediately and watched the Head Girl walk away. A painful look in his eyes provided some insight into their relationship and Hermione knew not to badger.

"It's nothing," he finally said before pointing at the buffet table which magically sprung food, "I'm starving, want anything?"

Before Hermione could answer, Ronan had already left her alone. It was only a matter of time she'd find herself like this, she thought, not realising a certain Quidditch captain waited behind to speak with her.

"Evening Granger," whispered Nott, "you look pretty."

Hermione's stomach sank but she wasn't going to let him see how much of his presence frightened her. She chose to ignore the boy to the best of her ability, but as he came around to face her, an impeding force compelled her to reply.

"Thank you," Hermione quietly said, looking anywhere but him. The smell of a popular cologne exuded from his body, intended to be well liked but instead repulsed Hermione. She had to resist the urge to cover her nose to show how vexed she was and stood her ground.

"How about a dance?" He challenged, not bothered by her persistence to ignore him.

Her head shot up and her eyes narrowed, obviously apprehensive by such a request.

"No."

Hermione was glad to hear the word echo soundly from her mouth, feeling a surge of confidence flow through her.

His smile slowly turned downcast and the look of displeasure scowled his face. His eyes naturally grew darker to intimidate her and he endured.

"I'm growing tired of asking politely now, Granger," his voice was a very low threat. His need to overpower her demanded that she obey.

But being situated in such a crowded room, Hermione knew Nott wouldn't dare try and hurt her. He worked in secret because that had a greater effect on a person's well-being. When no one in the world knew you were hurting, that was when Nott would strike.

"Have a good night," she replied with poise, confident she could walk away unscathed.

However, Hermione underestimated Nott's ability to coerce her and was startled by his reflexive hand grabbing her wrist.

A strong tug inched her closer to him and the once bold state she was in quickly faded away.

"What are you doing?" she nervously asked, looking around, hoping no one saw them as she tried prying his hand open.

A nefarious smile crept on his face as he was back in control of the situation. "I want my dance."

"No, let go of me," she pleaded, struggling to yank her hand away from his grasp.

"Granger-"

"Theodore," a familiar voice resounded beside them, "not here, mate."

Hermione's heart instinctually pounded in her chest by the sound of Malfoy's voice. It caught her off guard as well as Nott as she was able to slip her hand away from him with ease.

"Ever heard of minding your own business, Draco?"

Nott stood tall facing Malfoy, rage clearly displayed on his face for his interruption. Malfoy stood nearly the same height with his hands in his robe pockets, unfazed by Nott's comment. A second later, Blaise had come up from behind Malfoy, towering over the both of them, nonchalant about the whole situation. But when he saw Hermione, the boy took a more dominant stance beside Malfoy.

"What are you doing messing with her?" Malfoy asked.

He sounded more concerned for the boy rather than for Hermione which regretfully made her irate.

"Can't a bloke ask for a dance with the guest of honour?" Nott replied, backing down at the sight of onlookers. The presence of all three notorious Slytherin boys was enough to raise questions and Hermione had to be the one stuck in the middle.

"You hate dancing," was Malfoy's smug reply.

She could see that even Nott wasn't amused, but for the first time, he remained silent. The fear that Nott would charge Malfoy, magically or not, was beginning to see the light as the atmosphere dimmed to a seething malice among the two boys.

Friends turned enemies, Hermione couldn't quite tell and was left flabbergasted by how complicated their relationship appeared.

Honestly, she didn't know what to do if one were to strike the other in front of an entire crowd and looked to Blaise for help. She quickly deemed it useless as the boy looked more fascinated with the mental back and forth.

Hermione had to prepare herself to use forceful magic if the situation were to escalate.

"What's going on?" A worried Ginny asked diverting all of their attention to her.

Seeing the Slytherins gathered around Hermione was cause for concern and the girl came in good time to defuse the tension.

After a longer than necessary silence, Nott took a step back and finally answered, "Slughorn's looking for you four."

Hermione, Ginny, Blaise and Malfoy all sported a confused look before Nott could explain and excused himself with one last quip. "Looking hot Weasley. Congrats with your win. I look forward to kicking your fine ass this season."

Ginny respectfully flipped Nott the bird as he spoke and then turned to her group with an inquiring look.

As if on cue, Slughorn announced his presence to them in quick succession, leaving her no time to ask about Nott.

"Just the team I was looking for," the man said with great enthusiasm, "I want you four to meet some of my colleagues."

The night couldn't have gotten any weirder as the reticence among the teen wizards was fraught with ineptitude. The confusion in the air was palpable but Hermione felt it was only appropriate to smile as Slughorn introduced them to five potions masters, all of different sizes, ages, and beings.

These honourable wizards, ghost, and actual vampire were informed of the group's top quality potions that successfully bewitched the mind and ensnared the senses during class. They greeted the students generously, especially Hermione who at this point was heard of by practically all of the wizarding world.

"Horace tells us he has you lot brewing Felix Felicis, is this true?" A gaunt wizard with long dark hair asked Hermione in particular.

"Er- yes, it's true."

"Remarkable! The brew is highly complex and only managed by potion masters, like us if I do say so myself. Is it easier or a lot harder than you expected?" Another wizard inquired.

"With good team management, it's a lot easier that's for sure," Ginny replied for Hermione.

The five briefly turned to the redhead but looked at Hermione for affirmation. Ginny couldn't help but roll her eyes to which Blaise playfully nudged her to express a similar sentiment. She smiled back.

"All four of them are very talented but it wouldn't surprise me if Miss Granger here was in charge of the group," Slughorn added, peaking the five's interest in Hermione even more.

Hermione, fed up with all of the unwanted attention reluctantly spoke again, "It's a Friday night, schoolwork is honestly the last thing on our minds right now."

"But there must be great chemistry between you all, for a group to exact a nearly perfect batch of liquid luck already," The ghost continued to pester.

Hermione really did not want to come off as dismissive but she really did not want to answer any more of their intrusive questions.

"Yes, you can say that," Malfoy finally pitched in, drawing all five of the masters' attention including her own to him, "Professor Slughorn here has a great eye for crafting the brilliance needed for a group to succeed in potion brewing."

Immediately, the five were interested in what the infamous Malfoy offspring had to say about the efforts made by the group and asked to elaborate on his answer.

"It's clear to anyone we are an unlikely group of students. Cooperation would seem impractical. But when you're forced to overlook differences and find a common ground, in our case a skill for brewing potions, it amounts to far greater outcomes."

The look of astonishment graced the five potion masters' faces, clearly impressed with Malfoy's mature stance. Even Slughorn turned pink from the obvious appraisal he had received and had whispered to the five about how he always knew Malfoy was capable despite his family name.

Even Hermione stared fixated by his words but she couldn't help but feel it was all deceptive and internally scoffed at the boy.

"If you will excuse me," Malfoy said before leaving the group entirely.

With his absence, the five potions masters had turned their short attention to Ginny and Blaise and commented on how the two had cosied up to one another, asking if the pretty couple were together. Hermione thought it was a little unprofessional to ask such a personal question but wasn't as disturbed by it than Ginny.

"No, you've got it all wrong. We're just schoolmates. I'm happily dating Harry Potter if you must know," Ginny said with a wide smile, prepared to take on the bombardment of questions the five suddenly had for her. Even Slughorn looked excited to hear the boy wonder's name and crowded around Ginny to hear what little information she was willing to share with them all.

This diversion of attention allowed Hermione to slip away, unnoticed, to search for her date. Looking back, she could see Blaise was a bit perturbed by the grown men gawking at the girl but stood by her side to provide space between them and her. A protective feeling bounced off of Blaise for the first time and Hermione couldn't help but feel for the boy.

She shook her head and left that unfulfilled feeling up to the two of them and walked around the room in search of her partner. Unsurprisingly, she found Ronan speaking with Melinda in a far corner, a look of delight and laughter expressing their faces. Perhaps they had made up and so Hermoine decided to leave them be and look for her other friends.

Upon the dance floor, Hermione found a twirling Luna and a dapper Neville dancing to the wizard tunes in glee and felt it was best if she left everyone to their own devices. Making her way toward the entrance, she could see Nott surrounded by a group of his fellow Slytherin peers, having a good laugh and immediately bolted out of the room in hopes he didn't see her. Being alone with Nott was the last thing she needed that night and decidedly headed back for her dorm, certain Slughorn no longer needed his guest of honour.

In the dark of night, illuminated only by the torch lights that aligned the halls, Hermione listlessly walked in the direction of the Gryffindor tower, exhausted. She stopped in her tracks the moment she turned an empty corner to find Malfoy staring out of a window, also by himself, beaming by the glow of the pale moonlight seeping in through the glass panes.

His hair was tied messily into a tiny knot behind his head, a heavenly contrast with the dark rich robes he wore and only magnified his allure. Never did she felt so physically attracted to him than she did now but had to brush the feeling off as pitiful. He was standing in the way of her escape but she forced herself to ignore him and continued to walk a few feet forward.

The clicking of her shoes against the stone floor was enough to avert his gaze and briefly lock eyes with her.

"Heading to bed so soon?" asked Malfoy in a silver tone that made her shiver.

How dare he finally speak to her.


	23. Chapter Twenty Three

Hermione tried her best to ignore Malfoy as she continued down the lengthy corridor. She had good reason to chide him and demand an apology, but that made her feel weak and too forgiving. Instead, she chose to remain silent and carefully avoided colliding into him the moment she neared him.

Another inquiry, however, stopped her again.

"How was your night?"

Her heart pounded furiously against her ribcage but she wouldn't be deterred by his accosting.

"You look beautiful."

She sighed in response and clenched her hands tight against her sides to remain calm. She slowly turned to glare at him.

"Don't," Hermione warned, "don't you dare speak to me."

 _Now_ he wanted to talk?

For the past week, Hermione had felt almost betrayed by Malfoy as he dug deep into her most intimate parts just to be completely ignored afterwards. She ultimately felt her trust was violated and _now_ he wanted to speak with her as if none of it ever happened.

Hermione continued to berate him.

"You're nothing but a manipulative, inconsiderate, selfish snot who could have at least had the decency to tell me you didn't want to see me anymore," she vocalised, "instead, you acted as if I didn't even exist."

Malfoy had indeed hurt her.

"I'm sorry," he carefully said, trying not to upset her more.

However, his apology was the last thing she needed and she grew slightly more irritated by his constant disregard for her feelings.

"Sure you are," she scoffed before straightening herself out, prepared to walk away.

But before she could take one step forward Malfoy spoke again, "What can I do to make it up to you?"

His resonance came out soft and imploring. He stood staring at her with fragile eyes and a boyish face, a major contrast to his usual stern look.

He still had trouble sleeping, she noticed, looking at his dark circles underneath his eyes and her heart ached.

"Why do you do this to me?" she whispered, exasperated by this emotional bond they clearly shared but could never affix, "you make me sick to my stomach. I can't think clearly whenever you're around, and when you're not, all I ever seem to think about is you. But you won't let me in."

Her voice broke and her eyes were glistening but she wouldn't dare cry, not for him because he did not deserve her sympathy.

"Why won't you let me in?"

She expected no response like usual and nodded to leave. There was no point in engaging with him any further if all he ever did was curtail the issue.

"I'm no good for you," Malfoy finally said, effectively stopping her once more.

Her heart sank and she wasn't sure if she had heard him clearly. Unabashed astonishment painted her face.

"What?"

He rubbed the back of his neck and stared off, avoiding eye contact. It was a rare sight to see Malfoy have trouble collect his thoughts and it seemed he was a bit bothered by his own statement.

"It's best if you stayed away," he affirmed with enough courage to look at her again.

In the distance, the sound of some students who had attended Slughorn's party could be heard making their way to where they were in the hall. Instinctively, Hermione reached for Malfoy's free hand and started to pull him in the direction of one of the classrooms so as not to be seen together.

She needed answers.

Once the two were in the confines of an empty room, Hermione ruefully let go of his hand to hear him speak.

Malfoy stood closer to the exit half turned away, perhaps uncomfortable with confrontation. His pale features faded into the shadows and his entire body blended into the night.

It was a bit frightening as he nearly resembled the black creature in her dreams. She had to take a step back into the safety of the flickering torch light.

"What do you mean stay away?" Hermione asked referring back to his comment before they were interrupted.

She wouldn't let her nervousness get in the way of her probing.

Malfoy turned her way and noticed her slight apprehension to him but did nothing.

"It's hard to explain," Malfoy gingerly replied after a while.

Hermione's heart skipped a beat seeing the gleam in his grey eyes amid the darkness of the room. It was a prominent feature that stood out and was almost predatory in nature, oddly compelling her to step forward, like a moth drawn to a flame.

"I have time," she encouraged, no longer furious nor scared.

No matter how much she wanted to do away with Malfoy, Hermione always found herself captivated by him. She wanted to know more about his reasons and what he thought about and patiently waited for his answer.

He nodded, giving into her request.

"Up until recently," whispered Malfoy staring into the souls of her eyes, "I've always resented you."

Hermione let out a deep breath and relaxed her shoulders in understanding. She knew he felt that way about her since the beginning of their school careers but was intrigued to know what had changed.

"Back then, you were the annoying, over accomplished muggle-born who happened to be extremely perceptive at magic. I hated it. I despised how our professors glorified you and how even though you were considered beneath me by blood, you had always managed to prove that didn't matter. It was conflicting and my impudence wanted you gone. I even took pleasure in humiliating you whenever I could."

Hearing Malfoy's feelings towards her over the past years shouldn't have been a surprise. She's heard all the insults and had even confronted those who spat the exact same sentiments at her.

This time however, for whatever reason, her chest twinged deeply at the slander that came from his own lips.

"But then..." he drifted into a silence before starting up again, "you came to my doorstep one night, body beaten and ego bruised. Hermione Granger, the insufferable know-it-all, finally put in her place. I thought I'd be happy."

The ambiance in his voice held no malice but regret.

"But I wasn't. In fact, I was ashamed and disgusted with myself. I grew sick thinking of all the harm I've caused, not only to you but to the others as well. I couldn't sleep or eat properly and feared I had become like my demented aunt. Seeing you lie feeble on the floor and hearing you agonise over and over in my head was tormenting. I hated myself more than anything long after that. House arrest wasn't enough. I deserved far worse."

Malfoy was looking up at the ceiling as he recalled his time spent during reconstruction. She couldn't see clearly but she could imagine he was fighting back tears. He was hurting as much as anyone during that dismal period and slowly felt compassion for him. No one should ever have to go through such misery.

In time, Malfoy lowered his head and met Hermione's gaze once more.

"My mother, who fought for our eventual release, continued to fight against my father's life sentence. Her persistence and dedication to him kept her sane and now he's considered for an appeal, but even that's too damning. With him away, the best thing she could come up with for the sake of our family was to move to France to restart our lives. It seemed like our only option."

Malfoy turned away again and walked over to one of the desks closer to the windows. Light barely seeped into the room but Hermione, this time around, could see the glow of his outline under the moon light.

"Obviously, things didn't go as planned. I grew tired of running away and needed to repent. I needed to atone for all that I've done. I had to come back."

Hermione watched as he scanned the tabletop with his eyes and traced the scribbles sketched into the wood with his slender fingers.

"Then I saw you again. The real you, returned with grace and dignity," a small smile formed on his lips, "always the brave Gryffindor."

Hermione walked over to Malfoy and stood beside him. She watched his fingers trace the word "mudblood" carved into the wood. With little effort, he performed wandless magic and cleared the offensive word off of the surface with a meager touch.

"I was wrong about you," his fingers wandered over to her and found the side of her cheek, caressing her soft skin, "I was wrong about everything."

The mere implication of his affection for her lightened the ache in her chest and sent shivers down her spine.

"I had asked you to forgive me," he continued, "but I don't deserve your kindness."

Malfoy started to slip his hand away from her but Hermione stopped him. She clasped his hand with both of hers and gave him a fierce look.

"You don't get to decide that," she said in response, "running away again won't solve your problems either."

Malfoy's words drew similarities to a certain boy wizard who thought that he could take on the world alone. Both boys had good intentions as they didn't want to burden the people they loved with their plights, but both were extremely naive.

Had Hermione not insist on supporting her dearest friends, she wouldn't have been where she stood now.

She as well as Malfoy deserved the same amount of support in return.

"You came back for a reason," Hermione said as she gripped his hand more firmly, "maybe I could help you find it?"

Her eyes searched his for approval but he remained stoic.

"Will you?" he finally asked after a brief pause.

"Of course," she softly iterated, "good people deserve second chances."

Malfoy dropped his hand from her grasp, seemingly provoked by her statement.

"But what if I'm no good," he inquired, "what if I'm not worth it?"

He looked at her apologetically and made to leave but she stopped him again.

"Draco," she urgently called out before he could leave her, "please don't go. Whatever it is, I can help you."

She stared intently at the back of his neck as he was faced away from her again. His ruffled hair shined like silk in the dim light and she had the urge to turn him around and shake him out of his internal stewing.

"Can I trust you?" asked Draco with his head turned slightly her way.

Before she could answer he turned around in one fluid motion and pinned her against the edge of the table. His demeanor had changed drastically, maybe to intimidate her, she wasn't entirely sure.

Both of his arms trapped her up against the edge effectively securing her in place while Hermione clasped her hands together above her chest in surprise. He pushed hard on her abdomen, steering her backwards as he leaned in.

His mouth lingered around her earlobe and he repeated his question. "Can I really trust you?"

He elicited a gasp in response which was then followed by a breathy "yes".

Hermione's heart raced as a rosy pink coloured her cheeks. She felt demure but oddly safe in his arms even when he was being overtly domineering.

"I don't want to frighten you, Hermione," he responded as he pulled away slightly to look at her.

The stare and proximity between them intensified.

"You don't scare me," she managed to say even after his right hand had wandered over to her thigh.

"Good."

There was a gleam in his eyes that tugged at Hermione's heartstrings. He began to use both his hands to separate her legs so that he could fit snug into the crevice she created.

"Draco," she breathed, reaching for the sides of his face with delicate fingers, "what's going through your mind?"

His forehead was mere centimetres away from hers. He pierced her soul with fervid eyes and remarkably confessed, "I don't need you to save me."

Her stomach churned in revelation to his staunch words.

"But I want you," he muttered before closing his eyes, "terribly."

The nerves in her body tied up in a million knots. She didn't know how to respond but knew one thing was for sure.

She wanted him just as bad.

"Look at me," she said.

He slowly opened his eyes for her.

"I'm yours," she replied, smiling with a stomach full of butterflies, "as long as you're honest with me."

Draco looked extremely hesitant almost afraid. She knew she was asking for a lot from him but if they were going to make this work, they had to be clear with one another.

"Okay," Draco finally said before leaning in to kiss her forehead.

Hermione relished in his subtle fragrance as she closed her eyes. Hearing him say how much he wanted her felt glorious and she was beginning to feel vibrant again for the first time in a long while.

When Draco pulled away, he gently wiped her bottom lip with his thumb. The sudden space between them felt cold and she instinctively shivered in the absence of his touch.

"It's getting late," he said as he noticed her expectant gaze.

"Yeah," she disappointedly said but straightened herself out of her dishevelled state.

There was no rush to consummate their newly found relationship and she smiled at how silly her own persistence was. However, it was the only thing she felt was right and deserving since the two of them were different but similar by their faults.

Draco's smile expressed he felt the same way and she gladly reached for his outstretched hand that would lead her back to her dormitory.

Together, the pair walked in silence down the empty halls. Hermione could relax at the tranquillity the night had become and leaned her head against his shoulder, content on being with Draco. The evening, which started off crummy, was starting to look favourable.

What was to stop her from taking Draco somewhere other than her dorm?

With a rush of fervour, Hermione lifted her head up from Draco's shoulder and lightly tugged on his hand to pull him in the opposite direction of the Gryffindor tower. She hastily moved to stop him from questioning her and pulled him around a corner where the two were unexpectedly met with a floating entity.

Peeves was suspended in the air not too far from where they had emerged from and didn't notice their sudden arrival. Hermione's first reaction was to turn around to aptly avoid the troublesome poltergeist, however, Draco would not budge from his spot when she pulled on him.

Something was wrong.

Hermione followed his line of gaze to find out what exactly spooked him and to her utter dismay, saw that Peeves was not alone. In fact, right below him lay a body that remained unmoving on the floor.

Prefect instincts instantly sprung from the two and they approached Peeves with great caution.

The poltergeist, finally aware of their presence, turned around with sudden surprise and immediately spoke.

"I didn't do it! I found her like this."

When Hermione looked down, wand lit at its end to view the scene more clearly, she could see it was the body of a young Ravenclaw girl beaten to a pulp. She laid unconscious on the stone floor and instantly Hermione felt dread.


	24. Chapter Twenty Four

The massive doors at the entrance of the Hospital Wing were charmed open and in came a nimble Headmistress followed by a mischievous-looking Peeves. The moment McGonagall heard the news that one of her students were mercilessly attacked, she came from her private quarters immediately, wasting no time answering the call as she was still in her night robes.

Hermione, Draco and Madam Pomfrey waited beside the Ravenclaw's bed until the Headmistress' arrival.

"You see? How could I have possibly done it, she's so bloated," giggled Peeves.

"That's enough Peeves, you are dismissed," the Headmistress announced.

The poltergeist shrugged and flew straight out of the Hospital Wing on command.

"Poppy, what is her condition?" McGonagall asked looking over the girl in a state of shock.

The Ravenclaw's face was nearly unrecognisable due to how swollen her ailment was. She was only identified by her uniform and by a locket that hung around her neck depicting a moving picture of her and a relative on the inside.

"Roberta Lutterworth is in serious but stable condition. I've given her the necessary treatment to lessen the affected areas, but it will take some time for her to heal completely. Whoever has done this used a mixture of magic and their own physical hands to harm her. If Miss Granger and Mr Malfoy here hadn't found her sooner, I don't know how long she would've sustained an injury like this," Pomfrey replied, fixing the girl's pillow.

McGonagall looked over the girl's entire body one last time before turning to Hermione and Draco. With her hands clasped together, McGonagall signalled the two out of the Hospital Wing to speak to them privately.

"You two found her like this?"

"Yes," Hermione replied with her head held down.

The girl's physical state triggered a dreadful feeling in the pit of Hermione's stomach, it was hard to breathe properly.

"I'm assuming you were coming back from Slughorn's party?" McGonagall asked seeing as the two of them were still in their formal attire this late at night, "thank you for your quick response. You two may leave now, I'll deal with the rest."

Draco nodded while Hermione finally lifted her head to address McGonagall.

"Professor, may I have a word with you?"

McGonagall eyed the two before nodding and was pulled to the side by Hermione. She didn't want Draco to hear what had to be said to the Headmistress.

"Surely this was not an isolated incident. We have to assume this was done by the same perpetrator. Those wounds, beating until unconsciousness..." Hermione said with wide eyes.

"I agree. Do you have any leads since the first incident?"

Hermione inhaled deeply and shook her head no. McGonagall nodded in understanding before looking over to Draco who watched the two witches speak privately without him.

"Will the two of you come to my office in fifteen? After I contact Miss Lutterworth's guardians, I would like to discuss the nature of this assault."

Surprise graced Hermione's features as she turned to a serious looking Draco who nodded in compliance.

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

The moment the Headmistress came into her office, it was already three in the morning. She had asked Hermione to relay her findings of the first assaults on the young boys in front of Draco. McGonagall wanted him to know how serious these attacks were and to take extra precautions around the castle. Hermione complied but had purposefully left out the boys recollection of some details for his own sake.

"As prefects, I will task the both of you to find out who is responsible for these attacks as they have escalated to an unwarranted degree. Miss Granger will not be burdened to work alone and I shall expect more findings from your collaboration."

Hermione wanted to object at first, but she didn't have the courage to speak up against Draco's help. She wanted to tell the Headmistress that she had everything under control but McGonagall continued to state how two heads were better than one when it came to problem-solving.

Glancing over at Draco, Hermione could see he was fully attentive at the Headmistress' words but solemnity adorned his features.

"I understand and will fully cooperate," Draco said after McGonagall was finished.

"Thank you. You are dismissed."

Hermione felt strange leaving the Headmistress as her face fell grave, but the sooner they got to bed, the sooner they could rise and find the culprit.

As they walked away from the Headmistress' office, Hermione grew tired of wearing her heels and stopped to take them off. Draco stopped a little way in front of her but did not turn to assist.

Instead, he spoke up. "Why didn't you tell me about the first attacks?"

Once Hermione secured both heels in her hand, she looked up and found she was staring at Draco's back again.

"It wasn't in my place to tell anyone," she replied.

He didn't say anything for awhile which left Hermione befuddled. Draco sharply turned around to look at her with vigour she's never seen before.

"Honesty works both ways, Granger," Draco somberly stated.

She winced at the sound of her surname being used instead of her given name and walked a couple of steps toward him.

"I'm telling you the truth. McGonagall wanted me to figure this out on my own. I couldn't involve you because-" Hermione stopped herself from speaking any further.

What she'd say would only upset him more.

"Because you thought I did it, right?"

Hermione's stomach sank as she could see disappointment shade his eyes.

"It's not like that," she tried explaining, tongue-tied but hoping he'd understand her reasoning to exclude him from the investigation.

"Well, you're not giving me much reason to think otherwise," he retorted.

 _If they were going to make this work, they had to be clear with one another._

"I was doubtful," she finally answered, dread filling her as she watched his shoulders sink, "not of you, but of myself."

Another rare look of surprise featured his face. He was now more attentive than ever to hear what she had to say.

"It was easy to suspect you. The boys were able to recall features that matched your description and you were the first to have found them in such a state. I could've confronted McGonagall the moment I had a person of interest but I didn't. I couldn't because I knew deep down you weren't the one."

Hermione walked a few steps closer to Draco the moment she saw his scowl disappear.

"I knew you changed and that you couldn't have possibly done such abhorrent things. But when all odds were stacked against you, I didn't know how to feel or what to do so I kept quiet, hoping that eventually, I'd find out who'd really done it, all on my own."

She stood tall in front of Draco, ready to take in the resentment he must have been feeling. She knew it was hard to change stereotypical ways of thinking but as long as she kept an open mind, she could find some peace with her judgements.

"I've always trusted you, ever since the moment we agreed we'd be civil with one another. It was-"

Hermione was interrupted by the heavy weight of his lips crashing into hers that took the breath out of her. His strong hands cupped her rosy cheeks as she stood almost melting away in her spot.

When he finally pulled away, longing in his eyes, he quietly spoke.

"Don't say any more."

The weight of his words meld perfectly with his gentle fingers that tucked away loose hair strands behind her ears. He apologised for his small fit and gave Hermione a feather-light kiss between her eyebrows before taking her heels from her hand into his.

His free hand was placed firmly on the small of her back and he continued to lead her back to her dorm.

* * *

"Where were you last night?" Ginny asked, sitting on her bed, watching Hermione make hers.

It was ten in the morning, only a couple of hours since she's last seen Draco, and Hermione barely slept a wink. She could not stop thinking about the blasphemous boy as his adoration for her filled her head.

"With McGonagall," Hermione answered to the younger witch's surprise.

"Did you get yourself into more trouble?"

"No, it wasn't like that. We just talked."

Ginny looked convinced enough and plopped herself onto her bed with her pillow held tightly against her chest.

"You've got a letter by the way," said the girl as she stared up into her canopy, "it's from Ron."

Hearing the boy's name made Hermione's pulse race in a slight panic. It's been awhile since his last letter, probably due to his work schedule, but she was almost certain it was because of the breakup.

"Where is it?" Hermione asked as she finished with her covers and sat plainly on the edge of her bed.

Ginny reached over to her nightstand furthest from Hermione's side and grabbed the envelope that lay untouched before handing it over to the older witch.

Hermione took the article and stared at it for a while, contemplating on whether to open it or not.

Ginny watched Hermione as she returned to her resting position upon her own bed. Hermione could sense Ginny's curiosity but decided to read the letter later when she felt more worthy.

It was too soon for her and so Hermione opened up her nightstand drawer and slipped the envelope inside.

"You're not going to read it?" Ginny asked, leaning on her propped elbow as she was now facing her.

"Not right now, I've got things to do today," Hermione replied before readying herself to leave the room.

"Right. Don't overwork yourself," Ginny uttered before turning in her spot to sleep off the hangover she apparently had.

Hermione shook her head at the girl but made sure to exit the room as quietly as possible. When she made it down to the common room, the sight of some younger Gryffindor boys sitting comfortably in front of the fireplace got her thinking.

* * *

The sun blazed high in the sky on a chilly afternoon. Hermione carefully peered over the parapet that outlined the astronomy tower for a quick search of the premises. Draco stood next to her with his back turned away from the view but watched her fondly as she leaned over and looked around, his hands snug inside his pockets. The girl had come up with the idea to have Draco inconspicuously read Walter and Lachlan's minds to get the full details of the events that took place on the day of their assaults.

Ever since he was first ordered to work with her on the investigation, Hermione figured it was best to utilise all of their abilities to speed up the process and catch the perpetrator once and for all.

"They're not in the middle courtyard," Hermione said sighing.

All morning, the two, without making it apparent they were working together, had been searching for the pair of younger boys throughout the entire school. The astronomy tower and the surrounding outside campus were the last remaining areas they had yet to search.

If it were any other ordinary day, Hermione would've thought it bothersome to spend so much time looking for the boys with little efficiency. However, with Draco's help, she found the search to be rather pleasant.

"The only other place we haven't looked is Hogsmeade," Hermione said as she leaned in on her elbows, still scoping the grounds.

"Shall we pay them a visit?" Draco asked turning his body towards her.

Hermione could feel the heat emit from him and her pulse raced. She wouldn't let it show how much his mere presence was affecting her and remained unmoving as she watched some first years run around in the courtyard.

"Let's wait until they come back," she replied, tired from keeping a constant eye at the school's entrance.

She figured she'd let the boys enjoy their free time again.

"After all that's happened," Draco began, twirling a loose ringlet by Hermione's shoulder, "they still manage to return to the one place that's brought them misfortune."

Hermione's breath hitched at the revelation. The boys were young and full of energy so it wasn't abnormal for them to behave in such a way. Unlike Hermione, they were able to push past the trauma and continue to enjoy their lives unbothered.

If only it were that easy for her.

"It's admirable," she responded, standing straight up, no longer leaning against the parapet, "don't you think?"

Her gaze remained cast as she quieted down to hear him respond.

"Reminds me of you."

It was enough to avert her attention and stare at Draco with furrowed brows.

His front was facing her but his face was searching the horizon. His hair swayed with the wind and the corners of his lips were curled upward.

Before she could address Draco, he spoke up again.

"They're back."

Hermione turned her attention back to the front gate and sure enough, the merrily faces of both Walter and Lachlan walked right in. The two boys were accompanied by some of their peers which was a relief. All that was left to do now was to get them alone.

"They're heading to the lake," Hermione announced before exiting the tower, leaving an amused Draco behind to catch up.

Once Hermione had made it down the tower and into an intersection, she was immediately ambushed by a group of Slytherin girls blocking her path.

"What did I tell you?" The lead blonde from before spat, "you were to stay away from Slytherin."

As she spoke, a couple of the girls drew in from behind Hermione, surrounding her. Cornered by her adversaries, she quickly drew her wand from her pocket.

"First the Quidditch match then Slughorn's party? What next?"

Two girls stood with their wands pointed at her on the rear while two stood in front of her. Hermione naturally tensed up, ready to defend herself.

"Mudblood's got the nerve," said the Parkinson look-a-like in front of her on her right.

"And so does the rest of you," a stark voice Hermione recognised belonged to none other than Theodore Nott.

A startled gasp erupted amongst the girls and they, as well as Hermione, turned to her left to see an annoyed looking Nott.

"Us? I don't see how-"

"You're in the way," Nott interrupted the blonde, very irritated.

She promptly moved out of his way and watched intently as he walked up to Hermione.

"Granger."

Hermione's wand reluctantly fell to her side hearing him address her. Her eyes filled with panic and alarm as he approached her. She didn't want to speak to him but it seemed she had no choice.

"Here," whispered Nott as he attempted to give Hermione a tiny slip of parchment paper, "my CV."

Hermione's pulse began to slow down at the sudden request. She had almost forgotten about her task to help Nott with his application and took the parchment with no qualms. It was charmed to look like the size of a note for easy passing and she immediately tucked it into her pocket.

Nott didn't stare at her for too long and finally seemed to have registered the situation around them.

"Why are you still blocking the hallway? Don't you have some bras to stuff or something?"

Shock coloured the girls' faces one by one and the group as a whole seem to have lost their words. The students who had gathered around to see what all the fuss was about earlier had started to snicker. That was when the leader of the group decided it was about time they left and called to her girls to leave.

Silently, Nott turned Hermione's way and stared with a blank expression. He was dressed far too casual for the average rich pureblood socialite and half yawned as if he had just woken up. She guessed he was expecting a thank you from her as he made no move to leave.

"That was uncalled for," Hermione replied and sidestepped him as he was now the one blocking her path.

"Serves them right," he said stopping her in her tracks, "for messing with you."

Her sharp glare found his unperturbed eyes. He stared at her for what felt like hours in a matter of seconds before waving her off.

"Today, library, 7'oclock," Nott said lastly before breaking their contact and leaving her side.

There were too many people in the hall by now to have heard him but she still wanted to keep the appearance that they were not on speaking terms and continued onward in the opposite direction.

Hermione sped her way to the Black Lake, hand clutched tightly around her wand. Nott couldn't have come at a more inconvenient time filling her mind up with dread and anxiety. How burdensome.

With her head stuck in the clouds, Hermione didn't notice Draco and nearly collided into him as she walked.

"Granger," he greeted, walking beside her without drawing attention to himself.

Hermione shook her head to clear her thoughts and gave Draco a meagre smile.

"Sorry."

"No need to apologise," he said, "what did Nott want?"

Hermione slowed her pace but continued walking. She didn't expect he'd see the interaction and felt slightly embarrassed for not actually handling the situation.

"The girls and I were in a little scuffle. Nott surprisingly broke it up," she confessed.

The two were reaching the Great Lake by now and Hermione wanted to see Draco's reaction to the news. With his longer legs, he strode a little further than she did and couldn't make out his face. His silence only added to the mystery that was his mind.

Just when they made it close to the water's edge, Lachlan made it known that he had spotted Hermione from where he was having fun with Walter and his friends.

"Hermione!" Yelled the Hufflepuff who waved enthusiastically at her.

Hermione felt compelled to wave back and was relieved to find that both Lachlan and Walter were approaching her.

The closer they got to Hermione, however, the more they realised she was standing right beside Draco Malfoy. Their excitement slowly turned wary.

"It's been a while," Walter said once the two were of speaking distance.

The younger Gryffindor eyed Draco attentively but ultimately gave Hermione his full attention.

"It has. You two know Malfoy, right?" She asked, hoping Draco was working his magic on them.

"Yeah, he was the one who found us and brought us to the hospital wing," answered Lachlan who was beginning to look a little stuffed as he pulled on his collar to relieve himself.

Hermione figured it was Draco's doing and continued to engage with them.

"Er-nice to meet you," Walter greeted with his hand held out to him.

Draco took it and Walter immediately creased his eyebrows together.

Seeing Walter's expression change, Hermione spoke up on behalf of Draco and herself.

"Malfoy and I just wanted to follow up on how things were going with you two. Anything worth noting?"

Hermione figured if she wrapped their minds around the incident, they'd be able to delve deeper into their memories and recognise something.

"Are you helping Hermione?" Lachlan heedfully asked staring at Draco.

Draco only nodded and Hermione answered for him. "He's been tasked to help me find the perpetrator yes. I hope you don't mind him being here with me from now on."

Lachlan looked a little disappointed Hermione noted but shook his head.

"No of course not, whatever helps you."

Walter quietly stared at Malfoy with obvious suspicion but shrugged it off once Hermione made the proposal.

"I'm okay with it, as long as I'm kept up to date," replied Walter.

"Right. As of late, there's been another assault," the look on both the boys' faces grew worrisome, "we're not entirely sure if it's by the same assailant but chances are it is. That's why it's of great importance that you try and think back to that time again. Do you think you can tell us about any new revelation you might've got, any new details?"

Lachlan was clearly still flabbergasted by the news and needed some time to think. Walter, on the other hand, looked rather chafed and sighed.

"I'm sorry, we don't remember much. I wish we could just dig into our minds and pull out what you need to catch this bastard but there's nothing."

In the corner of Hermione's eye, she could see Draco turn his gaze downward in contemplation, signalling he had done his task and Hermione knew it was the cue to leave.

"That's all right. In the future, if by chance you do remember something, please feel free to contact me or Malfoy."

The boys nodded and waved their goodbyes at the two before heading back to their friends by the water's edge.

"What did you see?" Hermione asked without turning to Draco.

"Everything you told me. A normal day, hanging out with friends. But there was something else."

"What is it?"

Her curiosity forced her to look Draco in the eyes.

"I saw Theodore."

It wasn't a surprise in Hermione's mind that he would see the Slytherin Quidditch Captain as the culprit. What alarmed her instead was the look of confusion on Draco's face that had evidence pointing to the boy.

What's got Draco so muddled?

* * *

 _AN: I had major writer's block writing this chapter. Not 100% satisfied, but the story must go on._


	25. Chapter Twenty Five

_AN: Rated M for a reason_

 _It's been so long, I apologise. I have not abandoned the story as there are lots in store. Those questioning Hermione's behaviour when it comes to Nott are right to feel it is unlike her but I can explain. Due to the effects of his spell in combination with her PTSD symptoms, it's safe to assume she's not going to be at her full and healthy mental capacity. The spells feed off of that and that is why she is not the same old Hermione from before the war. I hope this clears things up for some readers. Thanks again for reading - Haru_

* * *

The sun was setting in the distance over the lake's horizon as Hermione found herself back at the boathouse with Draco. The two sat at the water's edge, dangling their legs over the wooden platform that ran out into the lake with the soles of their feet barely touching the surface of the water.

They had planted themselves far from the other students and needed a space where they could freely discuss what Draco had seen in Walter and Lachlan's minds. The process was daunting at first but once Hermione prompted the two boys into remembering the incident, it was easier than he had anticipated.

Draco could recall the moment the two boys woke up that morning and what they were doing before they met up at the school's entrance. They had decided, with a bunch of their friends, to head into Hogsmeade together but had eventually split off once they entered the town. Walter and Lachlan enjoyed the rest of the day with each other until dusk and ended up in front of the Hog's Head Inn & Pub as their final location. But as the boys began to approach the dingy building, their minds began to fog up, turning their surroundings into a hazy motion picture.

Fortunately, Draco was able to catch glimpses of the shifty event unfold and explained how he recognised himself and Nott make their way into the Hog's Head. They were a few steps ahead of the boys, which wasn't surprising, and had disappeared inside with no commotions. The haze eventually overcame the memory and Draco was just about to let go until an image flashed before him. Standing above the boys was a curious looking Nott who appeared to be looking down at them. Draco struggled to make out Nott's expression as he made no inclination to move or help the boys up and before he knew it, everything went blank.

"Based on your description, it's still unclear if Nott did it," Hermione said, watching the water ripple through the lake, indicating the giant squid was swimming across, "but it definitely places him at the scene."

Draco didn't respond to her right away as he flicked a tiny stone into the lake and watched it sink into the water.

"Reckon he's the one tormenting these kids?"

All Hermione could think about was of Roberta, lying in the hospital bed unable to move or properly breathe due to the condition she was found in. She was just a fourth-year student, quiet and kind and had done nothing wrong to deserve her brutal fate. If Nott truly was the culprit behind these beatings, what reason did he have to go after them?

Looking at the profiles of the victims, there was only one muggle-born. Walter and Roberta were both half-bloods to her knowledge and had no clear relationship with one another besides being schoolmates of different years. There was no gender or race preference and age was questionable. The timing of the incidents appeared random... or were they?

In broad daylight, being so far out from town, the Hog's Head was quite the convenient place to attack the boys because it garnered no eyewitnesses. As for Roberta, she was found in the middle of the night in a desolate hallway where no one would happen upon her until morning.

Was that enough evidence to consider the attacks premeditated or were they the product of random encounters?

Hermione was suddenly startled by Draco as he placed his hand over hers. He gently squeezed her fingers to bring her back from her deep rumination.

"Perhaps we should wait and see what Lutterworth has to say when she wakes up," Draco said as he rubbed his thumb in circles on her skin.

He was right. Trying to make connections with little clues was futile and would only give her a headache. Unless she received more information, she was overreaching with the little evidence she had that would connect the victims back to Nott.

"Do _you_ think it was Nott who did it?" Hermione asked in return. After all, there was some reasonable doubt.

Draco stared at Hermione's fingers possibly contemplating on the notion that a fellow classmate of his, let alone housemate, would be responsible for such heinous acts. She'd understand if he didn't believe the culprit to be Nott and almost dropped the question until he spoke.

Without hesitation, an "I do" slipped from his mouth.

Hermione's chest grew light as she felt a flicker of hope glow deep within herself. She wasn't alone with her intuitions and felt more confident in pursuing Nott.

"What do we do now?" Draco asked as Hermione leaned her head against his shoulder, looking out into the lake again.

Her mind was reeling with possibilities. To catch Nott would make her entire week. But there were far too many road bumps to overcome and prove he was the one assaulting these students. The thought of failing suddenly ravaged her mind and she was beginning to doubt her previous suspicions.

"It'd be easier to just forget it all," Hermione confessed, sullen.

She could feel Draco slowly remove his hand from on top of hers so that he could wrap his arm around her waist to pull her closer to him. He didn't speak and remained silent only to listen to what she had to say.

"I could ask the Headmistress to assign someone else and move on with my life. Focus on the important things, like my school work before I graduate..."

She could feel his head shift above her and waited to hear his response.

"So you've given up," Draco said with a tone that held a hint of disappointment, "that's not like you at all."

She watched the sun duck behind the treetops of the forest and breathed heavily. They were fleeting thoughts but her thoughts nonetheless. It wouldn't make her any less of a person but it did hurt. To quit fighting for what was right was not her forte but the pressure of maintaining her prestige was drowning her.

Why was she tasked to be the smart witch? Her logic wasn't unmatched and her bravery could be seen as fortuitous. Why did everyone count on her to help solve their problems? She too had her own troubles to face and didn't always have answers at the ready. Most importantly, why did she care so much what others thought of her?

"No one else can do it but you," Draco quipped, interrupting her train of thoughts.

He pulled away from her, forcing her to look up at him. His face was solemn as his hand left her side to cup her cheek.

"What if I can't? I don't know how much more I can take."

Hermione closed her eyes and exhaled deeply to calm herself down. Her self-motivation had grown feeble and it was mentally draining her.

"Stop doubting yourself," Draco said rubbing her cheek with his thumb, "we wouldn't be here right now if it weren't for you."

Hermione slowly opened her eyes the moment she had felt his forehead leaning against hers. The tips of their noses grazed one another but their eye contact was what captivated her. Feeling his breath brush across her lips tempted her and with a slight tilt of her head, Hermione gracefully captured his lips. It felt like a dose of energy and she was beginning to grow obsessed with the way his lips latched onto hers.

Gradually, an irresistible force overcame Hermione, pushing Draco flat onto the platform. Her weight pinned him down while his arms enveloped her form, the two of them smiling into the kiss that made her forget about her previous thoughts.

Hermione, for the first time in a long while, felt appreciated. The warmth of his acceptance freed her troubling conscience.

A few feather kisses in, the sky darkened into dusk and the one lantern that hung on the outside of the boathouse's back entrance automatically lit up. The sudden flame startled the two and they both shared a tired laugh. It was only a matter of time before they had to head back to the castle but Hermione didn't feel the need to leave. Instead, she bowed her head to place her ear against his chest to anchor him down.

"Can we stay like this for a little while longer?" Hermione asked.

She couldn't see his reaction in the way she was positioned but she could tell he was a bit flustered with how fast his pulse pounded in her ear. He didn't say anything and only tightened his grip on her, comfortably holding her in place.

Slowly did his heart calm into a rhythmic beating that eventually lulled her to sleep.

* * *

The soft sighs against a deafening silence echoed in Hermione's ears that woke her up from her slumber. She wearily opened her eyes to face a cabinet in the corner of the rusty old boathouse she had grown accustomed to.

Hermione blinked a couple of times before she could register where she was and found that she was lying on top of a sleeping Draco propped up against the wall. One of his arms was still wrapped around her waist as she was still pressed up against his chest, her hands clutched against him.

It seemed that Draco had brought her into the boathouse to rest after she had fallen fast asleep outside and instead of just waking her, fell asleep too.

Hermione smiled at the consideration and slowly pulled away so as not to wake him just yet. She couldn't help but stare at how peaceful the boy looked with his eyes closed as she sat quietly beside him. It was a sight she's seen before but this time it produced a soothing effect on her and was one she hoped eased him.

Hermione leaned in close for a better look at his face. She always knew Draco was one of refined taste, sporting luxurious attire that matched his sharp features. But it was his smell that attracted her the most. Whether it was with or without the expensive cologne, he reminded her surprisingly of home.

As Hermione watched him sleep undisturbed, she had to resist the urge to push some hair that fell over his eyelids aside. She, of course, could not and with careful balance, reached out to tuck the strands away from his face. As her fingertips brushed against his forehead, his quick hand shot up and grabbed her wrist, effectively startling her.

"Rest well?" he groggily asked as he pulled her hand to his chest and relaxed after realising who she was.

The way he drew circles with his thumb against her skin made her limbs tingle and stomach flip along with her now racing heart.

"You've charmed the place, correct?" she asked, trying to distract herself from the fluttery feeling.

If someone had found them together at the boathouse _again_ , she would die completely mortified.

"I did."

Draco lifted her hand to his lips and kissed the back of her fingers to reassure her they were safe from prying eyes.

"You could have woken me," Hermione said, facing the window above them, viewing the dark sky, "what time is it?"

Draco let go of her hand to lift his sleeve to check the time on his watch. She hadn't noticed he wore such an expensive item on his wrist before and felt silly when it was common knowledge he was wealthy.

"It's half past five," Draco said as he tiredly leaned further against the wall, "we should probably head back soon."

With her eyes still concentrated on the tree line right outside their window, Hermione realised they hadn't just woken from a nap and watched sceptically as the early morning began to show.

Even though it was now obvious that the two had spent the entire night together in the boathouse, Hermione still did not want to separate herself from Draco so soon. She quickly brought her leg over to straddle his thighs to stop him from getting up to leave.

In an instant, Draco stopped all his motions and stared directly into her eyes.

Hermione could feel her face blush red from embarrassment. She didn't know what compelled her to stop him from leaving but it felt good. She didn't want to leave his side just yet and could tell he felt the same as his hands gripped firmly at her thighs. A tinge of pink formed in his cheeks.

" _Granger_ , what are you doing?"

Her first reaction was to grab both of his wrists to restrain him, but as he enunciated her name, it had sent shivers down her spine and her hands helplessly grasped him instead.

He made her feel curious things, deep down in the core of her stomach and it urged her to follow through with whatever she had in mind for him. Her fingers eventually found his taut neck and pulled him close to her as she impulsively nipped at his jawline, indulged with his scent.

"I can feel you," she whispered heavily into his ear, "under me."

He hissed at the sound of her breathy voice and tensed his jaw as she continued to instil kisses onto his skin.

"The mornin's to blame," muttered Draco, losing all sense of modesty.

Hermione smiled against his neck, feeling the heat rise all over from the both of them. Her heart beat furiously in her chest, aching to be loved.

"I can help you with that," Hermione replied as she dragged her hand down his chest and over his abdomen. Her destination was above the opening of his pants where a clear bulge had formed.

Looking into his eyes, she could see the storm rage in his irises. His predatory stare accompanied with his laboured breaths as he watched her provocative form hover above him caused her to wriggle in her spot. His hands gripped her thighs tighter in response to stop the sudden urge to overtake and have his way with her.

Her pulse pounded erratically in her ears from the building tension and it beckoned her to continue on with her wicked ministrations.

Draco was hers and hers alone to control. It felt empowering and a new sense of confidence emerged from the depths of her capricious heart.

With a small wave of her fingers and a chest heavy with yearning, Hermione successfully removed the one button that would eventually set him free.

A wave of anxiety splashed at her chest from the realisation that she was slowly exposing Draco by her own initiation. She could blame it on him casting some kind of wicked spell over her but knew full well it was what she wanted, what she needed to do in the heat of the moment. The only thing separating her hand from his heat was the outline of his dark briefs and she needed to remove them. She wanted to know if he'd sing for her like she did when he touched her. She needed to know if he was affected as much as she was whenever they were together.

His hands started to loosen their grip on her as he started to draw more circles on her inner thighs with his thumbs. She knew immediately he was trying to distract her which proved successful as Hermione involuntarily shuddered, digging her chin into his shoulder blade.

Draco chuckled at her failed attempt at seducing him. It was far more difficult than Hermione had anticipated but she wouldn't give up. She was determined to wipe the smirk off his pretty face and proceeded to grab one of his wrists to warn him what she was capable of.

He continued to expertly knead and caress the areas she had no idea would excite her as she was wearing thick jeans due to the cold weather. However, not once did he make a move to tug off her clothes as she assumed he would with how much he was bulging from the seams. Then did she realise that she had absolute control over the situation. He was merely masking his own excitement that he usually tries to hide so well. What a shame, she thought, smiling at his own lame attempt at seduction. She was going to win this game.

Slowly, Hermione released her hand from his wrist and placed it at the hem of his shirt. She lifted the fabric that covered the top of his briefs to reveal not only the full extent of his excitement but a slightly sculpted abdomen she craved to touch.

"You're teasing," Draco sighed as his stomach flexed under the pressure of her curious fingers.

Hermione grinned as she watched her fingers trace the deep lines of his hips until they slipped underneath his waistband. She carefully unravelled his girth which became the object of her fascination as it stood, preening to be touched.

Immediately, Hermione's cheeks and neck flushed red from the exposure but it didn't stop her from wanting to touch him and satisfy his obvious need. She wanted him to want her.

The Slytherin sharply inhaled and gripped her thighs tighter as she moved her hand closer to his glistening length. Hermione smiled widely, pleased to know she had such an effect on him and proceeded to wrap her fingers delicately at the base, rewarding herself with the sound of him groaning in response.

"Witch," Draco growled as his head tilted upward toward the ceiling, eyelids hooded.

"Hardly an insult," Hermione countered as she watched him squirm beneath her, feeling him pulsate under her touch.

 _The_ Draco Malfoy was at her mercy for once, vulnerable and hers to please. Dazed with a growing infatuation with him, Hermione almost forgot her main goal of having him submit to her whims and increased her hand speed.

As she continued to relieve him, Draco reached up to cradle her cheek in his hand, his thumb pressing against her lips. Like second nature, Hermione parted her lips to accommodate his digit with her tongue. The roughness of his finger against her soft palate exciting her more.

"Fuck-" Draco snarled, gradually losing his senses as he was close to exploding.

Hermione never felt racier than she did now, straddling a boy with his finger in her mouth while she rubbed him off. It was unfathomable to imagine Hermione Granger, the biggest bookworm of her time, was fooling around with Slytherin's poster child.

In a last-ditch effort to save face, Draco leaned forward to capture her lips with his but failed to as she began to stroke the velvet skin of his length with both hands. At such a masterful pace, he was getting harder than she thought possible and slowed down.

"Granger, _please."_

"Begging are we?"

She watched as his mouth clamped shut, realising the mistake of showing any forms of submission. He writhed in his spot on the cold wooden floor, yearning for her to speed up but she wouldn't allow it, not unless he begged for her again.

"That's how you'll play?"

Hermione nodded, juvenile glee spreading across her face.

He dropped his head back again from the painful delight she created with her hands, incapable of responding vocally any more. Caught up with the euphoric feeling, Hermione began to slow her pace down to a halt in order to get what she wanted.

"I want you to beg," Hermione demanded with as much sex appeal as she could muster, "will you do that for me?"

Hermione began again, tracing her fingers to the tip, drawing tiny circles with his early nectar to push him closer to the edge.

Draco's eyebrows furrowed together as his stare grew magnetising. He didn't speak a word but his heavy breathing was evident that he was close to giving in.

"Please-," gasped Draco, desperately needing her to continue, "please Granger, I need you."

It was all she needed to hear and in mere seconds, quickened her pace before Draco came undone.

Thick spurts of white fluid coated her fingers followed by some more heavy breathing. She's never seen him so spent as she watched him slump back against the wall losing face. Almost out of embarrassment, Draco covered his eyes with his forearm, exhausted from the battle he ultimately lost.

She came out victorious.

Elated from winning, Hermione examined her hand, warm with his heat, with an excruciating need to taste him. Before she could bring her coated fingers up to her mouth, however, Hermione was stopped. Draco, with a tired bashful look, held her stained hand down before reaching into his pocket for a handkerchief. It confused her that he didn't want her to clean up his mess but she didn't complain and only watched as he began to wipe the fluid off of her fingers with the expensive cloth. The way he massaged her hand, tending to each finger with considerable care oddly excited her. She wanted him to lavish her the same way in a place far more passionate and involuntarily rubbed against him.

But before Hermione could incite any more foreplay, a sudden tugging at the boathouse's entrance alerted them to an unwanted presence. The sound of a confused Hagrid trying to open the doors from the outside was enough for them to quickly get up, clean their dishevelled selves and sneak away through the back. Once they made it safely out of the boathouse, away from the unexpected intruder, and onto the open grass that was dewy from the early morning, Hermione and Draco let out a roaring laugh.

The two had successfully escaped what could've been an awkward encounter.

* * *

Eventually, breakfast came around the corner where Hermione was happily enjoying crumpets, so much so, she was licking her fingers dry from the jam. Ginny noticed the older witch's rare temper and was curious to know what made her so lively on that particular morning.

"I slept well for the first time last night," Hermione answered after swallowing a mouthful.

"Mhm and where were you exactly?" The younger witch asked, painfully aware of Hermione's absence at the dorm.

"The library," she lied, "I guess I lost track of time."

Ginny smiled and shook her head in amusement. "Only you would enjoy studying all night and wake up the next morning happy."

Hermione wanted to retort but left it at that as she wasn't about to give up her location that night.

Reaching for another cup of coffee across the table, Hermione noticed the unsightly form of Nott walking into the Great Hall with a merciless look on his face. The sight of him immediately made her stomach drop with dread.

She had forgotten about their planned meeting yesterday and cursed herself for the oversight as she warily watched him stalk toward his table.

She didn't know why his bad mood affected her so much but it did and it felt ghastly.

On his way to the Slytherin table, Nott had unceremoniously bumped into a fellow Ravenclaw of the same year.

Without missing a beat, Hermione braced for the reception.

"Watch where you're going, yeah?" said the boy who clearly had no idea who he was speaking to.

Nott, visibly provoked, immediately grabbed the boy's collar and almost lifted him in the air with strength fueled by his own anger.

Their exchange instantly caught everyone's attention and the moment Nott had laid his hands on the Ravenclaw, Hermione along with a couple of other prefects, including Draco, stood up in response.

Luckily for everyone, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor was also making her way into the hall and stopped the confrontation from escalating. It ended with Nott letting the now frightened Ravenclaw boy go before exiting the hall with what she would describe as murder in his eyes. It was only a matter of time until chatter started to fill the room again when Hermione found herself staring anxiously at a worried Draco.

Could her absence yesterday have contributed to Nott's awful mood? She was left wondering for the entire day until later that evening. Back in bed, Hermione anxiously held out Nott's CV in her hand to analyse it. How bothersome.

She contemplated about the letter she would write to Harry for the boy's recommendation and have almost forgotten about her letter from Ron.

Carefully, Hermione leaned over, pulled open her nightstand drawer and took out the fully intact letter. The spidery handwriting only belonging to Ron tugged at her consciousness as she hesitated to rip open the envelope. She wondered what he wrote, his probable last words before possibly never seeing him again, and inwardly crumbled in despair. Would she be able to handle such a rift?

In the end, she couldn't bring herself to open it.

An audible sigh escaped her lips as she chucked the letter back into the drawer, deflated at the thought that she was still worth writing letters to.


End file.
